The Emperor's Avarice
by Sir Boolin the Fuggiest Swae
Summary: What if Ling was in a Remant where the Xing Empire was a long-lost legend, leading to some of the most major conflicts and changes in the world? Well, 'Nothing is impossible.'
1. Chapter 1 - The Peace Treaty

**So, I've finished FMA:B and I'm currently watching FMA. Ling was probably my favourite character, so I wanted to make a story about him. What do you guys think?**

"Ya Yeet" Regular speech

'_Ya Yeet_' Inner monologue

**'Ya Yeet'** Mysterious voice

**"Ya Yeet" **Multiple voices

\- **London Park **\- Location

**[Evening] **Time

* * *

**Chapter 1 - The Peace Treaty**

* * *

"LING YAO! Come down here this instant!" Oh boy, he'd really gone and done it this time...

A boy of about 8 walked slowly down the steps of his house. He stood at around 140cm, with black, spiky hair that was fashioned into a small ponytail. He wore a gold coloured button-up shirt and cargo shorts, with a foam scimitar at his side.

"Yes, mother?" He asked, feigning his most charming grin.

"What's this I hear of an altercation on your first week of school?" That didn't work. He looked towards the doorway to see a man with tanned skin and golden hair. Behind him, sulking in the corner, was one of the most annoying girls he had ever seen. Yang. Xiao. **Long**.

"I have no idea what you are talking about mother." He lied through his teeth.

"Ling. Do I hear a lie? I know I got that call."

'**You're really in it now, kid. Wow.**'

Ling stood through a ten minute talk, after which he was expected to apologise to the girl who threw sand at his face! How cruel the world was.

* * *

**[Break Time - School]**

_"Sorry, but we were at the sand pit first, so we play here! Those are the just rules!" Ling told a young Ruby Rose exasperatedly. He and his friends had been in the middle of making a sand-castle for the ages when Ruby had asked them if she could sit in the sand pit._

_"Excuse me." A girl with freckles and blonde hair stepped in. "I'd like you to let my sister sit here."_

_"_You_ look nothing alike." Yang looked pretty angry at that. "Besides, we need all the sand possible to match the castles my great, great, great, great grandfather would have owned as the Emperor of the long-lost Xing Empire-"_

_Yang had gingerly walked over to the sand castle, taken a good look at it, and kicked it straight in tits base._

_"_That's_ how much I care about your stinking grandpa! Now let my sister sit here!" She began go yell._

_"Yang! That's not nice!" Ruby pleaded. Ling strolled over to her, shaking._

_"_My_ great, great, great, great grandfather was a great man! Don't you __**dare **__disrespect his memory!"+ He almost had tears in his eyes. Yang took a shovel of sand and threw it at his face._

_He dodged and pulled at her hair. The teacher had soon gotten involved, and the two were put on a time-out for the rest of the day. Nobody played in the sand pit that day._

* * *

**[Flashback End]**

"I'm not apologising for defending my great, great, great, great grandfather's honour from this brat!" He spat out. Yang stepped out, fist prepared.

"Ling!" His mother warned.

"I don't care about your grandpa! Is he here now? No! Then the… Sing Empire or whatever doesn't matter!" A few of Ling's siblings growled from just beyond the room at that.

"Yang! Don't think you're off the hook, young lady!" Taiyang suddenly turned around.

"But he-!" Yang sighed.

"You've quite clearly disrespected the honour of his ancestor. Some people take that very seriously. Apologise right now."

Yang sulked, mulling over her possible actions.

"Fine, but only if you say it!" She pointed at Ling. He smiled. They both began to speak.

**''I'm s**orr... Hey!" Ling scowled deeply. Stupid, smart girls! He had another lecture after she had left, after 5 minutes of Ling being forced into apologising.

Ling went upstairs and sat in his room, sulking. He didn't see what he'd done wrong. She'd insulted his ancestor, and him by extension. She was no better than the rest of their class, who teased him behind his back throughout the entirety of the day. In fact, he was pretty sure she joined that group after break. It wasn't as bad as it was in Mistral, but it still got on his nerves. It still made him feel unwanted and alone.

He was happy, he was friendly, most of the time, and he made people laugh! What more was there to it? Why couldn't he make more friends? Michael, Terry and Ryan were his only real friends. In less than an hour, they'd all become been able to bond over their shared experiences of isolation and loneliness. Why was it so hard to fit in with anyone else? Ling laid back on his bed, deeply in thought.

* * *

**[Evening]**

That night, dinner was quiet in their household, despite the fact that Ling had 5 siblings present. A small conversation had started over the events that had transpired at school.

"You really shouldn't treat your peers so harshly, Ling." His mother scolded.

"But the honour of the Xing Empire was at stake!" Ling half pleaded.

"I doubt a single girl could threaten the Xing Empire." His mother retorted. Ling remained quiet.

"It sounded like she was defending her family's honour, in a way." His eldest brother, Fang, spoke up. "Maybe you could start by befriending her younger sister."

"She seemed polite enough. Definitely better than her sister." Ling remarked.

"I dunno, sounds like a crush if you ask me." His fourth eldest brother, Cheng, teased.

"I never!" Ling jumped out of his seat.

**"Such foolishness." **Bao and Bai, his second and third oldest siblings remarked tiredly.

'**Maybe the experience couldn't hurt. You're gonna be pining for women soon any way.**'

'_Shut up, creepy voice!_' That voice. That damn voice had been at the back of Ling's head for years. The first time he had gotten in any serious trouble was when he listened to its advice and stole candy at age 4. His backside was sore for a good day-and-a-half after his mother was done.

'Watch the salad- Oh for... Ling!' His mother yelled out as a healthy dose of salad dressing decorated his new shirt. Soon, the house was back to normal.

* * *

**[The Next Day]**

Ling sat at his table. He had done the first 6 questions on his sheet, but could not, for the life of him, figure out 12x12. The highest he could go was 12x10, and that was because that was easy. He only knew his 2, 4, 5, and 10 Times Tables by heart, anything else was just mysterious to him. Suddenly, he remembered what he had discussed yesterday.

"Hey! Michael!" He half whispered. Michael looked up. "Y'know the great invasion of Wednesday?"

"Yeah?" Michael responded.

Terry piped up. 'The blonde one is puuurrreee eeeeeeeevviiiiiiilllll.' He whispered like a snake.

"The red one wasn't so bad. She's in, what, Year 1? 2? Seemed polite. Maybe we can get her to help us rebuild, if we give her something in return."

"Yeah. Makes sense." Ryan added.

"Ling! Be quiet!" The teacher yelled out. Yang snickered.

"It's 144, by the way."

"Oooohhh! You're always so smart." Ling complimented. He handed his sheet in to the teacher, just 30 seconds before they were allowed to pack up for Break. He ran out of the class, to the area where he'd hang out occasionally, and where he'd seen Ruby hang out at as well. The monkey bars. He swung on the monkey bars with ease, and utilising his upper body strength He lept across two, pulling his legs up to hang down next to a sad-looking Ruby Rose. 'Hey.'

"Ah! Monkey person!" She yelled out. A small 'Hey!' could be heard from a nearby faunus.

"Wanna help rebuild the Xing Empire?" Ruby looked conflicted.

"Yang said you were a D-Word."

"We'll let you sit when you're done." And just like that, Ruby ran down to the sandpit.

With their allotted 20 minutes of time (In Ling's old school he only got 15 on good days!) They had created a large sandcastle. Possibly the largest they had ever made.

"Wow." Michael said, dusting sand out of his raven hair from his unfortunate tumble.

"Crikey!" Terry said, massaging his small moustache, which he had grown quite fond of.

"Mhmn." Ryan added, shaking sand out of the joints of his glasses.

"That was fun! I wanna do it again!'" Ruby added.

"You... really have an eye for large structures." Ling remarked, in awe. The thing nearly came up to his head!

"Wow! That's great! I think this'll look great on the school website! Anyone mind if I take pictures?" Nobody objected, so the teacher took out his scroll, and began taking pictures. Ruby was a bit shy, but seeing how happy Ling was made her a bit less apprehensive.

Around the third picture, Yang came crashing through on one of the tricycles in the area.

"Sorry…" She said in the fakest apologetic tone ever.

"Yang Xiao-Long! Can I not trust you to ride the tricycles responsibly?" Yang did not look like she cared one bit at all.

"It was an accident…" She put on her puppy eyes.

"I have quite the reason to speculate that it was, in fact, _not_ an accident." Ling said, attempting to sound smart.

**'Jesus Christ, you sound like a jackass right about now.' **

'_Shut up._'

"Well, you may have to have your tricycle taken away, seeing as you clearly cannot drive it properly. You're lucky that's all I'm doing."

"But-!" She sighed. "Ugggghhh!" She jumped off it, and sulked off to her friends.

* * *

In the next few weeks, Ruby ended up spending more time with Ling. She couldn't understand how one person could be so outspoken and confident, but he was fun. She ended up breaking out of her shell and learning to be more confident through him, and even Yang couldn't help but rethink her sentiments.

"This Ling kid must be really doing something. Ruby's been making more friends than I've ever seen!" Qrow remarked during one of Ruby's sleepovers. "Hey! Don't stop cleaning 'till I can eat off it!" Yang grumbled in response. She had gotten into trouble when she had broken one of their neighbour's garden chairs with her friends. As such, she was grounded for a week, and had her motorcycle magazines confiscated for the time being.

"I don't like Ruby playing with weird kids."

"Maybe you got off on the wrong foot, y'know." Taiyang spoke up, grabbing a flask out of Qrow's hands. "If you tried to be friends he might not be that bad."

"I dunno. Maybe." Yang spoke, mainly to herself.

* * *

**[Next Week]**

Yang had to admit, Ling was a pretty interesting kid. For a class presentation, he decided to do some work about one of his ancestors, who ruled the Xing Empire that sprung up in Mistral some hundred years ago. He had clearly done his research, and was very passionate about the work. She had actually managed to learn and _not _be bored, which was something she tended to struggle with.

Even as her friends snickered at his eccentricities and made comments about him, Yang couldn't help but feel bad. After the break bell rang, she shyly walked over to the sandpit, where she knew Ling, his friends, and Ruby be.

"Hey… guys." Terry ran in front of the sandcastle, spreading his arms in front of it. Ling pulled out a foam scimitar and stared with wary eyes.

"Look, I'm not here to break the castle again." Ling lowered his scimitar, while Ruby looked on curiously. "I feel like I've kinda been a jerk to you guys, so… truce?" Yang was shaking, finding it difficult to actually get the words out. She had never been good with apologies. Ling rummaged through his pocket, before pulling out a sheet of paper. It looked like a child's imitation of a legal paper, complete with crayon colouring and a fair share of misspelt words.

"I want to apologise for being kind of a jerk as well. Sign here please." Ling handed out a pencil. Yang looked at the peace treaty, before smiling and signing her name. Terry moved out of the way, while Michael, Ruby and Ryan both cheered.

Just like that, they were no longer sworn enemies.

* * *

**AN: The idea of a young Ling is quite fascinating. Thinking about how he would've been shaped into the person he became is fascinating to think about, so expect some character building for the next 2 or 3 Chapters.**

**Until we meet again!**


	2. Chapter 2 - The Dragon's Pulse

**AN: I'm actually really liking this story, and the way it's turning out. Don't have much else to say, so, enjoy!**

"Ya Yeet" Regular speech

'_Ya Yeet_' Inner monologue

**'Ya Yeet'** Mysterious voice

"**Ya Yeet" **Multiple voices

\- **London Park **\- Location

**[Evening] **Time

* * *

**Chapter 2 - The Dragon's Pulse**

* * *

Ling hated waking up in the morning.

He always had to wake up extra early just to be able to brush his teeth before his brothers stormed the bathroom. "When I'm the Emperor, I won't have to evade my brothers. They'll make room for me!"

'**That's if you're somehow able to bring back a long-lost Empire, against the wishes of almost everybody across the four kingdoms. I admire your avarice, though.'**

Stupid voice, always bringing him down. He rushed downstairs, leaping into the kitchen to make some cereal. His mother was fast asleep, so he could have some of the Pumpkin Pete's cereal he could only eat on weekends. He hated having to eat the boring Bran Flakes on weekdays. With three more spoonfuls to eat, Ling savoured each individual one. On his last bite, a yawn erupted from the living room. Soon, Fang walked through the dining room, slouching his way to the kitchen.

"Breaking your diet, hmm?" Ling froze in horror.

"Fang, I-err... I-"

"Won't snitch. Too tired." Ling let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. Life resumed as normal.

Ling left the house, wishing his mother a farewell as she got dressed for work. He went around to the back of the house, wading through the Forrest's around the back of the neighbourhood. He felt around an overgrown wall until he found it. With a twist, the wooden door was open.

He walked along an overgrown path, stopping right around a massive tree. "Nothing is impossible." He whispered, and three people stepped out from the back. Michael, Terry, and Ryan.

"It's the man himself!" Michael exclaimed. They began to walk up a mossy, stone path, joking and messing about the whole way. They soon climbed over a fence, although Terry needed a bit of help. They came out in front of a road, leading down to the school.

"When are we gonna tell Ruby?" Ryan asked. "Seems more convenient."

"In due time." Ling responded.

School went as it normally did: Ling just talked to his friends for most of the day and copied answers off of Ryan, they ignored the comments made by people who really needed some volume control, and they played in the sandpit with Ruby. Of course, he got into a bit of trouble for being distracted in lesson, which he didn't quite understand. He was perfectly focused! Not on the lesson, but still!

That evening, Ling had gone down to the local nursery to pick up his youngest brother, along with Cheng. His mother would be running a bit late, and Fang would be out taking missions. He was a Hunter, which Ling had to admire.

His father was one before he travelled off up north for some reason. Ling never saw him after that day, and his mother only gave vague answers. She did clarify that he had not died, but she wouldn't let him know where he was. Ling looked down glumly.

"Ling! Cheng!" His youngest brother exclaimed happily. His mood got slightly better.

"Calm down there, little man!" Cheng exclaimed

"Don't call me little!" He pouted so damn adorably.

'**Jeez, reminds me of some other annoying kid I used to know.'**

'_Shut up._'

'**Don't tell me to shut up, piss-ant!'**

"You okay there, Ling? You look angry." Cheng said.

"Oh no, I'm fine." Ling responded.

The rest of the trip was a shouting match between Ling and the voice.

'_What are you, anyway?!_'

**'I am the embodiment of greed itself. That's all you deserve to know.'**

'_Why are you so damn grumpy all the time?_'

**'I don't know, having to live in the subconscious of a child again can be _really _irritating!'**

'_Why don't you just leave then?_'

**'I can't! Not until you kick the bucket, or my power fades. And I'm good for another 1000 years or so!'**

'_Power? Sounds interesting. Give it to me._'

**'Why should I?'**

'_I want it. And seeing as you want to leave, wouldn't giving me your power be the best way to do so?_'

**'Avarice takes effort, kid. Getting what you desire isn't a matter of asking for it. That's why I'm stuck here.'**

'_Actually, what did you mean by "again"?_'

**'You'll learn when I want to tell you.'**

* * *

**\- At the Yao Household –**

Ling walked up the stairs, about to go to his room to sleep. As he walked sleepily upstairs, he came across something that piqued his interest. Rather, it almost killed him.

"AAAH!" With an iron-tight grip, he hung to the railings for dear life.

"Ling! Are you okay?" His mother called from downstairs.

"I am perfectly okay!"

**'PFFT, HAHAHAHA!'**

'_Be quiet!_'

Once he regained his balance, he looked at what had tripped him up. It was a book. "Who the hell left this here?"

"Ling! Watch your tone!"

"Sorry mother!" He picked up the book, examining the cover. It was old, leather bound with faded lettering. "A. L. C. H… Y and A. L. K.…E. S. T. R .Y?"

He opened the book from the front, and began to flip through the pages. It was all so confusing, containing many words he couldn't understand. It was something to do with 'Alchemy' Eventually, he got to a page which boldly displayed the words 'Xingese Alkahestry' on them. He turned eagerly, hoping to find some long-lost secrets or information. There was a lot of talk about the 'Dragon's Pulse' and 'Chi', but most of the words seemed to be notes taken from other things, mainly written in what he recognised as a West-Mistralian dialect, formerly spoken by the people of Xing.

His mother had taught him a few words and phrases (as well as his father), but most of it was complete nonsense to him. He took the book with him to bed, attempting to decipher it as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**[The Weekend]**

Ling decided to depart from his house in search of the library. He had made it his mission to find out more about this mystical 'Dragon's Pulse', as what he did manage to find was vague yet interesting. He walked through busy streets, dodging past people as they went about their days. Eventually, he came across the building which he had set his sights on: The Patch Great Library. If he were looking for anything, it was sure to be here.

Ling pushed open the doors, walking to the front desk. He knocked on the desk, getting the attention of a kind-looking lady with brown hair and glasses.

"Hello." He said.

"Hello! How may I help you?" She spoke in a gentle voice.

"I'm looking for some books on ancient martial arts, please. Specifically the Dragon's Pulse?"

"Ah, that should be in the history section, under Mistral History." She pointed off to the right.

"Thank you!" Ling beamed a smile before walking off.

"We don't have many books on Xingese culture. Most records were burnt after the Great War. The ones you'll find are generally quite biased."

"I'll keep it in mind." He responded.

"Say, you look a little young to be walking around by yourself. Are your parents nearby?"

"No. My mother and my brothers are all at home."

"Okay, are you sure you're okay?" She asked concernedly.

"I'm fine on my own." He smiled before walking off. He went in the direction she pointed, an-

"Excuse me, but is that a knife in your back pocket?" Ling felt his back pocket. There was indeed a knife there.

"Sorry! It's a Mistral thing. There's a lot of crime, so most people carry protection. I must have blanked this morning." He explained sheepishly

"Well, I'm going to have to confiscate it." She held her hand out.

"Eh, it's nearly broken anyway." He placed it in her hand.

"Make sure not to carry weapons out and about, okay? Someone might get the wrong idea."

"Okay." He nodded, before walking away. Following her instructions, he found Mistral History quite easily. He began to look through the books, scouring for any information he could.

* * *

The Dragon's Pulse seemed to be a very secretive art, as most of the books said nothing about it. The few books that did went into very little detail about it, only describing it as a long-lost art based on the detection of life energy, or Chi. Still, most records said nothing about it's inner workings.

He had been looking for at least an hour, a task that his attention span was not built for.

A faint breeze drifted past him, and he turned back. There was nobody behind him '_Just a drought._' With that, he slowly replaced the books, getting up and dragging himself to the doors dejectedly

He left the library, sorely disappointed but willing to look elsewhere. '_If I get my mother to teach me more of the language, I could possibly uncover the notes! Yeah, I'll do that!_' Determination spread across his face as he walked home, he spotted Ruby walking with her family on the other side of the road. He waved at her, and the entire family waved back. She motioned for him to cross over to their side, and he obliged.

"I guess going out wasn't a complete waste of time." He remarked to himself.

"So, I hear you've made friends with my daughter," Taiyang spoke, "and made up with my other daughter."

"She didn't exactly make it easy." He muttered, although a quick smack to the back of his head assured him that at least Yang had heard.

"Say, are your parents around? You're, what, eight years old?" another man appeared, with raven hair and red eyes.

'In Mistral it's very common to see children walking around by themselves during the day. Especially in small villages. I thought it would be the same here?' While crime was rampant in some areas of Mistral, most organised crime was carried out in the later hours. While it could happen, children were often left alone by criminals. It ruins your credibility if all you do is target children. And people talk a lot in the criminal underworld. They still travelled in packs, with weapons, just in case.

In small villages, most crime happens during commutes to other villages. Even still, if a member of the community gets robbed, or beaten, or killed, the criminal best make sure they leave no traces. More often than not, they tend to disappear afterwards.

"Nope. You'd usually be eleven or twelve before then." Yang joined in the conversation. Ling nodded in acknowledgement.

"So what were you doing?" Ruby asked.

"I went to the library to do some research."

"What kind?" Ruby continued.

"Research on the Xing Empire. Y'know, a lot of books published here are really biased against it. Was it that bad?"

"Depends on who you ask," The raven-haired man spoke again, "The victor decides history, though. And the victor wasn't Xing."

After a few minutes of talking, Ling returned to his house, unlocking the door and walking in. He went up to his mother, who appeared to have just returned from her job. She was in the kitchen cooking a meal. He ran up to her.

"Mother," he spoke.

"Yes, Ling?" She seemed a bit tired.

"I want you to teach me more of the special language."

"Why? It _is_ a dead language at this point." She began to cut up some vegetables.

"I'm really really _really _interested in it!"

"What is the real reason?" His mother sighed, putting down the knife.

"What do you mean?" He relaxed in an attempt to hide his motives.

"You cannot fool me. I know how you try and hide things. Come on. Tell me."

"Jeez, fine. I want to understand a book I found."

"Could you not bring it to me?" His mother questioned. With some reluctance, he pulled out the book from a bag he had been carrying. His mother took out the book, looking at the front page. Her eyes widened as she looked at the front page, and she began frantically looking through the book.

"Mother?-"

"Where did you find it?"

"... On the staircase. It nearly tripped me." Ling had a bad feeling in his stomach. His mother opened her mouth to speak, before taking a deep breath.

"Sooner or later, you would have found it." She said, mainly to herself. "It was a gift, from your father." Ling's eyes widened in surprise.

"Dad?"

"This book... it is much to dangerous for someone of your age." Tears began to run down her cheek. "I will have to take it away, but one day you will be old enough to read it. Although, I hope you never do." With that, she ran out of the kitchen, leaving a sad and confused Ling.

"What happened?" Fang asked from the living room.

"I think... I found something... I shouldn't have." Ling felt tears in the corners of his eyes. Fang walked into the kitchen, to find Ling on the verge of tears.

"Come here." He sighed, spreading his arms out. Ling ran into them, beginning to cry.

* * *

**AN: So, Ling is beginning to form an interest in the Dragon's Pulse and the teachings in the mysterious book he found. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Until we meet again!**


	3. Chapter 3 - Thoughts

**AN: So here's Chapter 3, a lot later than I would have liked. Sorry about that one. I won't waste any more time.**

'Ya Yeet' Regular speech

'_Ya Yeet_' Inner monologue

**'Ya Yeet'** Mysterious voice

"**Ya Yeet" **Multiple voices

\- **London Park **\- Location

**[Evening] **Time

* * *

**Chapter 3 - Thoughts**

* * *

For the remainder of the weekend, Ling felt pretty bad. As if he'd just brought up something he really shouldn't have. His brothers had attempted to cheer him up to slight success, but the fact that he'd caused his mother to cry still weighed down on his mind. He currently sat on the sofa, arms crossed.

**'C'mon! Stop being such a drag, just loosen up! Is this how a future Emperor should be acting?'**

He was so upset that he wouldn't even give into the goading of the mysterious voice in his head. '_Just go away!_' He brooded.

**'Okay kid, Jeez!' **The voice sighed.** 'Fine. Looks like you need some time to yourself anyway.' **The voice faded away.

Ling sighed to himself, before lying down.

* * *

**-School-**

Even sat next to his friends, Ling was no better. He looked down at his book dejectedly, and hadn't spoken for half an hour today, a personal record. 'Hey, Ling.' Terry spoke up. 'Mate, what's wrong?'

"I think I made my mother sad."

"How?" Michael asked.

"I showed her a book from my father, and she cried. Now I feel really bad." His friends attempted to console him, but they couldn't really do much. All they could think of was patting him on the back and offering a few words of support. Terry tried to make him laugh, but he only received a small chuckle for his efforts.

Yang didn't like to eavesdrop, but she was concerned for Ling. Hearing what happened only caused her to draw parallels to her father life. To her mother. To how her father felt whenever she mentioned her name. Knowing that he had gone through something similar strengthened her resolve She decided that she was going to try and help a bit, but how? She pondered over it for a while, but her mind drew a blank.

He wasn't even playing in the sandpit, like he always did. She didn't like seeing Ruby's eyes so full of concern for him. She needed to do something to help him. Maybe this way they could solidify their new friendship.

* * *

**[Lunchtime]**

At lunch, she walked across the playground, too deep in thought to be hungry. In her thinking, she almost missed the person she had been thinking about, walking out of the school building and into the playground.

"What happened?" She hurried over to him.

"Nothing," he sighed "the teacher just wanted to talk to me. Noticed I was sad." He moped over to a nearby bench, sitting down on it with little effort.

"I... heard what you said. Y'know, about your mum."

"Yeah. That's why he was talking to me."

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened to you dad?"

He sighed, sitting up. "He left when I was four, really suddenly and with no warning. My mother wouldn't tell me where he is or why he left, but I remember she cried a lot."

"I kind of know how it feels. My first mum left when I was born. My Dad didn't really cry, he just... didn't really do anything for a while. He just sat there."

"You said your first mother."

"Yeah, my second mum is Ruby's mum. She... passed away a few years after Ruby was born."

"Oh... sorry, that must have been really sad."

"Don't say sorry, it's not your fault."

"But still, it must have been hard to... what's the word? Uhh-"

"Cope?"

"Yeah, something like that."

"It… was. Soon after our second mother died, I went out to go and find my first. I took Ruby with me. I found the house she was supposed to be in, but it was empty. And then the Grimm came. If my uncle hadn't found us, we would have been Grimm food." She began to tear up slightly. "Ruby could have died, and it would have been my fault." The dam broke, and her vision was covered by tears.

"Don't cry! Don't cry." He wiped away some of her tears, but they kept coming. He didn't really know what to do, so he just imitated his mother. He hugged her, rocking gently. The tears wouldn't stop, but they slowed down. "I know a song my mother would sing to me whenever I cried. It might help."

"O-*sniff*-okay." He took a deep breath, and began to recite the song. He only knew what a few of the words meant, but the song had been inscribed into his head, for every scrape, cut, bruise, restless night, and any time he felt sad. Soon, Yang stopped crying.

"Are you okay now?" He asked. When he got no response, he turned to see that Yang had fallen asleep peacefully on her shoulder. '_Hm. She's... kind of warm. And she smells like oranges. I like oranges._' Ling felt his cheeks heat up, for some reason. He didn't feel like waking her up.

'**Wow kid, she's already **_**sleeping on your shoulder**_**? Calm down you little stud!' **Ling jumped up in embarrassment.

'_Shut up or I'll..._' The sudden movement caused Yang to stir. She gently opened her eyes, before immediately jumping back.

"Aahh! Never tell _anybody_ about this." She threatened, fist right in front of his face.

"Okay, okay! Jeez…" He backed away fearfully. They both looked at each other for a bit, Yang putting on her scariest face, and Ling looking thoroughly scared

**"Pfffft!"** They both burst into laughter.

"Y-y-your _face!"_ Ling managed to get out.

"You looked so _scared!"_ Yang cracked up. After another minute of laughter, they both calmed down.

"Yeah... It's good, knowing I have someone else who knows how I feel. It's weird, when we first met, I hated you. But now, I've realised you're actually kind of decent."

"Yeah. I feel the same way." Yang responded. "Hey-" The bell rung loudly, interrupting whatever Yang had to say. "Forget it." They got up, walking to where they needed to be.

'**I'm glad you got out of your little rut there, kid. It was starting to get real depressing watching you mope around like a little emo. Y'know, you have depressingly morbid thoughts sometimes.'**

'_Shut up._' Ling responded playfully. His mood had certainly been lifted.

'**By the way, your singing is atrocious.'**

'_Shut up!_'

* * *

**-The Yao Household-**

"You finally feeling better?" Fang asked, having just gotten back from a mission. He was a professional huntsman, which was pretty cool. But he was Fang, so that took away all of his points.

"Yep. Talked to someone, and we really helped each other with their emotions and stuff."

"Any girls involved?" Ling turned staring daggers into the back of his head.

"Why are you always like this?" Ling whined.

"Jackpot. It was probably that Xiao-Long girl, wasn't it? Did she stroke your head and tell you it's all gonna be okay?" Ling progressively turned redder and redder with each sentence.

"I'll have you know _I_ comforted her-" Ling's hand snapped to his mouth, but the damage was done.

"Mother! Ling's flirting with underage girls!" He yelled up the stairs.

**"What!?"** His mother and older brothers zoomed downstairs.

"Ling Yao! You have some explaining to do!" His mother stared him down.

**"We're seriously disappointed in you," **Bao and Bai stared into his soul, **"**

"But I'm underage too, so it's not like it's- That's not the point! I wasn't! I swear, I wasn't!"

"My baby boy, corrupting an innocent youth! It wasn't that Xiao-Long girl, was it?" Fang nodded slyly. Cheng gasped. Ling's mother went into a rant in Xingese. Ling's younger siblings just stared in confusion, having no idea what was going on. Soon, the house was as lively as it had always been, as laughter filled the air soon after. All was well.

* * *

**'So, what are you gonna do now?'**

"What do you mean?" Ling adjusted his pillow.

**'What are you gonna do about the book?'**

"Oh. Yeah... I dunno. I mean, it could help me know where my Father is... but at the same time, it's gonna make my Mother upset." His mind was split in two over what to do. He rolled around in his bed-sheets.

**'If you are gonna get the book back, I may be able to help you out a bit.'**

"How!?" Ling shot up in his bed.

"Ling! Who are you talking to?" His mother called out from downstairs.

"Myself!" Ling responded. He took the silence as a confirmation his mother had heard him.

'_Shit! Forgot I was speaking out loud.'_

**'Ooooh, potty mouth!'**

'_Shut up! It's your fault.__ Any ways, how can you help me? And why?_'

**'You have to make up your mind on whether you want the book or not before I answer you. Avarice is nothing but a dream without certainty.'** Ling kept that thought in his head, repeating it like a mantra until he fell asleep.

* * *

**AN: So that's that chapter completed. I'm hoping the conversation felt organic, and I'd appreciate some feedback. Until we meet again!**


	4. Chapter 4 - Rise and Shine

**AN: I think this went quite well. Hopefully you'll share my sentiments.**

'Ya Yeet' Regular speech

'_Ya Yeet_' Inner monologue

**'Ya Yeet'** Mysterious voice

"**Ya** **Yeet**"Multiple voices

\- **London Park **\- Location

**[Evening] **Time

* * *

**Chapter 4 - Rise and Shine**

* * *

'**Rise and shine, piss-ant!' **Today was going to be hell.

"Ugghhh." Ling groaned. "Can I have… like… an hour?" He pleaded, snuggling into his bed. "It's sti-"

'**I SAID WAKE UP **_**NOW!**_**'**

With a startled yell, he rolled out of his bed, falling onto the floor whilst entangled in his sheets. "The hell?"

'**HAHAHAHAHAAA! Fuckin' priceless.' **Ling could imagine his smug smile, wiping away a tear.

'Ling? Are you okayyyyy?' His mother called out groggily.

"I-" He placed a hand over his mouth. He waited in dead silence for a few minutes, until he was sure his mother had fallen back to sleep. He then slowly got up, making as little sound as possible. '_Okay… how long today?_'

'**I'd say… about half a kilometre is a good warm up run. It's only day three.' **Ling groaned internally as he shuffled downstairs. By the time he had changed into his running gear and gotten out, it was 5:30 A.M. He normally woke up at 6. **'From Number 89 to… that post over there. The broken one.' **Ling prepared himself, bent down in a typical starting position.

'Okay… gradually build up speed, then go all out in the last hundred.' He told himself.

'**On your marks… get set… Hold up, wait a minute, I think I for-GO!' **Ling looked dumbfounded for a half second, before sprinting off. That fake-out definitely threw him off-target. Regardless, he powered on. By the end of it, he was knackered. He breathed heavily, hunched over in exhaustion. **'79.99. Eh, okay.'**

'_That's all you had to say?!_' 'Rrraaaggh!' He exclaimed in frustration. He sauntered off back to his house.

'**Oi, oi! Who said you could stop? Three more, then you get to go back inside, drop, and give me twenty!' **Today was _truly_ going to be hell.

* * *

**\- At School -**

Ling tried _really _hard to pay attention in school. Even more so now. But still, there were so many interesting things you could miss when you're really focused. Like Michael almost snapping his glasses. Or Terry using a marker to fill in his moustache. Or Yang stroking her hair for the fifteenth time today. Or the sky outside shimmering from the heat. **'Ling!' **His eyes snapped back to the teacher, as he tried to focus. Half of the things the teacher said just bounced off his brain, still. Perhaps it was the strenuous exercise shutting his bodily functions off… Or maybe-**'Ling! Focus, dammit!'**

At break, instead of playing in the sandpit like usual, Ling was reading books at least two years above his age range. Believe it or not, a creepy adult man swearing at you constantly didn't help when reading books full of proper vocabulary. 'This is stupid. Why am I doing his again?' He asked. It's not like _The Majestic Matsby_ or _The Winter Glow _or _Larry Trotter _said anything about Alchemy.

'**Well, if you're serious about learning Alchemy and Alkahestry, you need to start training seriously. No point in trying to learn if you can't keep up with the subject matter.' **The voice answered.

'_And how would this help with that?_' He questioned.

'**I'm trying to broaden your mind. Introduce new vocabulary, so you don't get as confused.' **The voice answered.

'_Can't you do that yourself?_' He questioned again.

'**Fuck no. Too lazy.' **He stated.

"Fuckin…" He mumbled under his breath.

"Hey, Ling." Ruby interjected.

"Ah! Don't sneak up on me like that."

"Why're you reading nerd books? Also, you shouldn't swear. My dad says it's not good to swear."

"Well, a creepy mysterious voice is trying to teach me magic, and, don't tell anyone you heard that."

"You're weird!" She giggled. "I'm gonna go back to making the sandcastle. When's The Emperor gonna come back from his Diplomatic Vacation of Enlightenment and Sp... spirtalism?" She inquired.

"Spi-ri-tu-al-i-sm. Well, I'd estimate… very soon. Keep an eye out for bandits!" He playfully nudged her arm.

"I will!" She waved, before running off.

"Now. Page… 103. Ugghhh…" He went back to reading, the words still bouncing off his brain. He had books on Geology, Chemistry, and Biology he had to complete as well. Today was hell. Scratch that, the next month would be hell.

* * *

**\- A Month Later -**

"Well, Mrs Yao, I don't know what you've been doing at home, but Ling is really excelling! He's gone from being near the bottom of the class in terms of test results, to constantly being in the top five. His speech is very articulate and clear, he's very quick when figuring things out, and he hasn't stopped talking yet, but he's more focused than ever. And PE, which he normally does well in, regularly has him in the top three, just behind Craig Spruce and Yang Xiao-Long. He should be proud of himself!" Ling's teacher went over his progress since the start of the term.

"I didn't think you had it in you, Ling." His brother, Fang, complimented offhandedly.

"I'm so _proud _of you!" His mother almost crushed him to death in her surprisingly strong bear hug. "You're almost like Bao and Bai! Keep this up and you might get a scholarship, just like them!"

"Mother, you're embarrassing me… and killing me… at the same time!" He looked around at all the looks they were receiving. "Fang! Help!"

"Wow… I didn't know that about space." His brother was completely oblivious, his headphones glued on tightly. His mother finally relented, turning to the teacher.

"Will that be all, Mr. Ivanov?"

"Yes, that will be all." The trio departed, walking past the Xiao-Long family. Yang looked over at Ling, snickering before dragging her bottom eyelid down. He stuck his tongue out in retaliation, before also smiling.

'**See, kid? Your school life's improved, your family's proud, and you know a bit about how to bend nature to your will. Oh, and you've got a future wife to boot. Sounds like a sweet deal to me.' **Ling's face turned red.

'_Shut up! She's just a friend._'

'**Okay, mister 'I let girls sleep on my shoulder and pretend we're just friends'. Don't forget, you smelled her as well!' **His face grew redder by the minute.

'_You just had to ruin it._'

* * *

**\- A Month Later -**

Ling recited the table of elements off by heart, before looking back at the sheet. "Yes!" He yelled. He could finally go to sleep. The 1500 Metre jog had taken everything out of him, and all he wanted to do was rest until the next day.

'**Hey, kid, don't forget about finishing the books.' **Oh, yeah! He still had to finish off the biology book and _The Winter Glow_. Easy.

* * *

**\- Two Months Later -**

'**Ready for the 1500 Metre dash, kid?'**

"Please, I was born ready."

'**You weren't saying that last month.'**

"Shut up!"

'**GO!' **Just like that, he was off. Greed felt a little bit of pride, seeing Ling jog with relative ease. He showed no signs of faltering until the 1000 mark, which was something to be proud of.

**'Keep going, you might actually make a presentable time!'**

* * *

**\- A Week Later -**

'**I think it's about time you started working your way up to transmutation, kid.'**

'_Am I really ready?_'

'**Sure, kid! You could probably do it in… two months! See, you've got that drive that a lot of other people don't. You get me?'**

'_Kinda?_'

'**Most other people wouldn't have gone to such lengths for something like this. I see you bettering yourself every day. Your Avarice is strong, kid.'**

'_Mhm._'

'**No matter what way you put it, what you're doing is inherently selfish. It serves you alone. But being greedy ain't really all that bad. Wanting, no, demanding the finer things in life, while putting in the work to back it up? That's some positive greed right there. All this work, it came from you. Suck on that, dad.' **He mumbled the last part.

'_I see… Well, there's no time to waste! I gotta start right now! Thank's for the little pep talk, mysterious voice._'

'**You can call me Greed. Greed the Avaricious.'**

* * *

**\- Two Months Later -**

Today was the day. The day he'd finally be able to perform his first transmutation. He'd planned everything out perfectly. It was the last week of the summer holiday. His baby brother was fast asleep, as were Bai and Bao, who had tired themselves out from their university studies.

'**It's really happening, huh.' **The voice spoke.

"Yeah. We've come a long way, haven't we?" Ling sighed.

'**That's four months of watching you struggle I'll never get back.' **He laughed out.

"Shut up." He responded playfully.

He recited the elements that made up wood, and clearly pictured what he wanted to make in his mind. It was a figurine of the Eleventh Emperor of Xing. A simplified version of what he saw in the history books. He carefully placed his hands onto the floor, and took a deep sigh.

He activated the circle.

A brilliant blue light shone, illuminating the circle. Blue electricity crackled in the air, engulfing the wooden slab. Ling closed his eyes, and everything went white.

He slowly opened his eyes, taking in the smell of smoke. He looked down at the transmutation circle, preparing for the worst. What he found, was an almost picture-perfect wooden recreation of the image he'd thought of.

"W-woah…" He said breathlessly. He took a moment to think, before falling back. "I… did it. I did it. I did it!" He couldn't have been happier. He jumped up and about the house, celebrating his achievement. He scooped up the figure, cradling it, enjoying the warmth it possessed. He immediately ran upstairs, to his room, to the shelf where he kept all of his most prized possessions. Just at the top, right next to the bracelet his father had given to him, he placed it. It fit perfectly.

After leaving no traces of the circle, he went to bed smiling, drifting off into a blissful sleep. He dreamt a very pleasant dream. The next morning, all he could remember was a fancy crown, lots of circles, and glowing gold hair. And oranges, too. Weird.

* * *

**AN: ****I'm pretty proud of this chapter. I enjoyed writing in the little excerpts showing Ling's progression, and Greed opening up and talking about his views on the world and greed. Tell me what you thought about it!**

**Until we meet again!**


	5. Chapter 5 - Changes

**AN: Soooo... It's been a while. ****Why haven't I posted anything in like 2 or 3 Weeks? Well, it's mainly down to writer's block, procrastination, laziness, lack of focus, etc. Anyways, I managed to write this chapter andadd some minor stuff to the previous chapters, so that's pretty cool.**

**BTW, if you haven't yet, you should listen to IGOR by Tyler the Creator. It might be my favourite album of the year. IGOR'S THEME slaps.**

**Anyways, let not waste anymore time!**

"Ya Yeet" Regular speech

'_Ya Yeet_' Inner monologue

**'Ya Yeet'** Greed the Avaricious

**"Ya Yeet" **Multiple voices

\- **London Park **\- Location

**[Evening] **Time

* * *

**Chapter 5 - Changes**

* * *

Ling walked bouncily down the street to school, smiling brightly. "You seem way too happy today. Summer break just ended, _and _we have, like, the strictest teacher in the school." Michael pointed out. Ling looked over his shoulder, his smile undisturbed.

"And?" He responded. "Don't worry about the small stuff. Think about the bigger picture."

"And what is the bigger picture?" Terry asked.

"Life! Life is the bigger picture. We're alive! And that's great." He responded. "Today's gonna be great."

"Whatever you say..." Ryan added on.

* * *

**\- At School -**

Ling was unusually happy at school. He wore a constant smile on his face, despite the fact that he was at _school_, and pretty much zoned out throughout half of the lesson, despite the occasional reminder from Greed.

'_What should I transmute next? Actually, when am I gonna move on to Alk... alkahestry?_'

**'Pay attention, Ling.'**

"Is he weird or what?" A girl from two tables down remarked.

"I swear, everyone from Mistral's insane. My uncle lives there, and we haven't visited him in 5 years because..." A boy responded. As if that was gonna bring him down. Today was his day!

"Please, don't speak amongst yourselves!" His teacher exclaimed.

'_Yeah, be quie-_'

"Uhh, Ling! Please answer the question on the board." He looked up to find:

"3+2x4? Uhhmm… Isn't that 20?" He spoke, unsure.

"Ryan!"

"11, sir."

"Correct. When we're looking at sums like this, the multiplication and division signs have priority over the addition and multiplication signs. You'd know this if you were paying attention, and you were, right?" A few snickers and snide remarks were made.

'_Well, it's not all bad._'

"Actually, I almost forgot about the math homework! I'll expect it just before break."

'_Ohhhhh nooooooooo-_'

* * *

**[Break Time]**

After getting chewed out for five minutes about expectations and all that jazz, Ling trudged outside, barely paying attention to his surroundings. He would have played in the sandpit, but his privileges had been revoked, due to his lack of homework. All in all, his day was shaping up to be miserable.

He walked around for a bit, not paying attention when, "Oomph!" He walked into someone, almost falling to the ground. "Sorry." He looked at the person who he'd just bumped into. A somewhat large bull faunus who stood at around 170cm, with brownish red hair, horns, and eyes. To his left was a tall, blonde, scrawny kid, and on his right were two raven haired twins of average statures.

"Hold up, hold up." The bull faunus grabbed Ling, who'd turned around to leave, by the arm. "Don't just say sorry and walk off, squinty." He sneered, pulling him back.

"What's your problem, lard-tub?" Ling pulled his arm away, turning to leave again. This time, he was stopped by the two other kids.

"Where do you think you're going, little boy?" The scrawny one asked condescendingly.

"None of your concern, bones." Ling retorted. He saw a small crowd begin to form as people realised what was happening.

"I don't think you should be saying those things to Bradley Taurus, or his gang." One raven haired one put a hand on his shoulder, the other grinning at the forming crowd.

"Let's show this little smart mouth his place, eh?" The grinning twin exclaimed.

"I say we teach him how to respect his el-"

"Don't wanna hear it. Don't go around looking for fights if you know what's good for you." He cut off Bradley before staring at him, garnering an "Ooooohh!" from the crowd.

"Hey, stop!" Yang pushed her way through the crowd, up to the front. "Leave him alone!" Bradley looked at her, scowling.

"This ain't about you." He shoved her back into the crowd. "Now, how should we-" Yang ran back at full force, shoving him with a considerable amount of force. It did little more than push him off balance for a bit, and make him angry. "What did I SAY?!" He grabbed her by her hair, tossing it to the ground. "Hold her back!" His two lackeys pinned her to the ground. She struggled and squirmed, but there was very little a nine-year-old could do against two eleven-year-olds. Even with Terry, Michael, and Ryan, the three boys could hold their own. In fact, Terry and Yang were the only ones who could actually do some damage.

"Now, put 'em up!" Bradley yelled at Ling, before charging him. Ling was startled, but quickly shifted to the side, sticking out a leg. Bradley slipped, falling hard onto the ground. "RRAAGGH!" He jumped back up, sending a series of wild grabs and punches Ling's way. "Look, I don't really want to fIGHT *dodge*… an oversized baby throwing a temper tantrum!" The crowd laughed, and Bradley went red.

He evaded them all, except for one. A wild swing caught him, sending him flying back. He slammed onto the ground, all the air knocked out of him. Bradley, enraged, jumped on him, punching him repeatedly. Ling could do nothing but block the vicious blows raining down upon him.

His defense broke, and soon a punch found itself dangerously close to his face. As it neared its target, Ling's vision began to slowly fade to white. All of a sudden, his body jolted and contorted, moving his body to the side. Bradley yelled out in pain as his fist hit concrete, tearing the skin off of his knuckles. Ling used the momentary pause to flip him over, imbued with an unknown strength. He rolled to the side, taking a moment to regain the feeling in his legs and arms.

'**Ya really gonna just let him do that? Or are you gonna fight back?'**

Bradley got up, wiping tears away from his face as fury graced his features. He ran at Ling with the same tactic as before, hoping to end the fight. His run, slow before, was even slower now, like a snail. A red hue filled Ling's vision as Greed informed him of what to do. He crouched down low in anticipation, waiting for the perfect moment. The power surged in him, making him feel as if he could crush diamond.

'**NOW!' **He sprung up as Bradley was less than a meter away from him. Putting one hand on Bradley's outstretched fist, he spun clockwise, landing a roundhouse kick with a sickening crunch. Bradley spun through the air, a bloodied tooth flying through the air. The bull faunus hit the ground with a thud. Ling fell to the ground too, having lost his balance. The red hue faded, leaving him in a confused daze.

"WHAT IN THE **HELL **IS GOING ON HERE!?"

* * *

**\- At the Yao Residence -**

Ling sat at home by himself, absolutely terrified of what would happen. Of course, he had been suspended for fighting and doing serious damage to a fellow student. Two weeks, with the threat of expulsion. His mother wasn't available to come into the school, so they had left her a voicemail, stating his reasons for expulsion. He didn't know what happened to Yang, his friends, and the three older kids, but he assumed it was something bad.

"Ow!" He shifted uncomfortably, trying to apply less pressure to the bruises he'd recieved.

'_What the fuck was that, Greed? That last part was totally unnatural!_'

**'Look, I couldn't just sit back there and just let you get beat up. Remember that power I was telling you about? Yeah, that was a small fraction of it.'**

'_Couldn't you have just given me the strength to hold him down or something, instead of kicking out two of his teeth?_'

**'But would that have taught him anything?'**

'_What?_'

**'Look, whether or not you knocked out some of his teeth, you were still fighting him. The school wouldn't give a shit about what else happened. You'd have probably gotten the 2 weeks regardless.'**

'_..._'

**'And just holding him down until he gave up wouldn't have humbled him as much as knocking him down. He still gave you multiple bruises. He still had you pinned down and on the ropes for over half of the fight. I admit, my methods are a bit rash and violent, but that's just me. What you and I wanted was to show that fucker his place. You have to admit it did feel good.'**

'_I guess... but still!_'

Of course, Bradley's mother had come in. She was _furious_. Shouting, screaming, crying, all the works. She threatened to sue the school and Ling's family for all they were worth. She was deeply convinced that her son could do no wrong. That it was the other kids' faults for 'leading him astray'. That Ling was at fault for fighting back. "Fuck's sake." He swore, biting at his finger nails. He was a dead man walking. 16:37. 2 hours and 57 minutes left before his demise.

Fang was out on a mission, and Cheng was out with his baby brother. They'd both probably be back to witness the execution. Ling heard keys jangling in the door, furiously. His blood turned cold. His eyes popped out. Tears formed. He damn near had a heart attack. He turned towards the hallway, expecting to see his mother…

"Ling!" Cheng's voice. He let out the longest, loudest, most relieved breath known to man. "Ling! Hurry up! Pack your stuff!"

"Why?" Okay, now he was really worried.

"It's Fang! He's in the hospital!" He stopped for a minute to process the words. He hurried up, wasting no more time. He ran out of the house, using all the strength his legs could muster to get to the local hospital.

* * *

Ling arrived with Cheng and Yin in tow. He saw Bao, Bai, and his mother there too. Ling walked with them in silence, nobody willing to speak. A terrible feeling bubbled up in his stomach as he walked through the hallways. His steps started becoming shaky, and he gripped his mother's hand harder. Looking up at her, seeing the worry on her face.

It was very unlikely she'd seen the voicemail. And if she did, this probably pushed the punishment back by a long time. Seeing his mother look so worried made him feel sad. Distraught, even. When she reached the room, she froze. She had her hand on the door handle, but she couldn't bring herself to turn it. To see just how bad the damage was.

Ling put his hand on hers. She looked at him, and he smiled at her. "We have to, mother." His words gave her the strength needed to turn the handle. She pushed the door open warily, stepping into the room slowly. The nurse said she could only allow to visitors into the room at the moment, meaning Cheng, Yin, Bao, and Bei had to stay outside and wait.

"So, you're his mother, I am to assume." The doctor asked. She nodded. "Well," he began, turning around to face them, "Your son's conditions has stabilised, but he was in quite bad shape when he was taken here. From what we've gathered, him and his team took a mission to clear out a few Grimm, and the amount was larger than specified. He ran out of aura, and was attacked by an Ursa in the leg. His team also suffered a bit of damage, and they're in the hospital as well-"

"But is _he_ okay?" Ling's mother interjected, worriedly.

"Ah, well, I was getting to that... the claw from the Ursa dug deep enough to reach bone, and severed quite a few arteries and nerves in his left leg. We did patch him up the best we could, but looking at it realistically... his career as a huntsman is over. His left leg may be permanently out of condition."

The words lingered in his brain. They reverberated. They bounced into every corner, making sure they were clearly understood. His entire world did the equivalent of performing five back-flips and breaking its neck on the landing. All he could say was: "Oh."

Today was not a good day.


	6. Chapter 6 - Awakening

**AN: Chapter 6 is kinda late, sorry, but I've been planning out a bunch of stuff. Hopefully this chapter was good enough.**

"Ya Yeet" Regular speech

'_Ya Yeet_' Inner monologue

**'Ya Yeet'** Greed the Avaricious

**"Ya Yeet" **Multiple voices

\- **London Park **\- Location

**[Evening] **Time

* * *

**Chapter 6 - Awakening**

* * *

The next few weeks were most likely the hardest weeks of Ling's life, not including his days in Mistral. They had moved to Patch for a better life; perhaps their lives had become even worse.

The money Fang received from his missions was a large part of the reason the family could afford to move in the first place. At least 25% of the money his mother was using to pay off the mortgage and their bills came from his missions. Now that he could no longer work, the family was suffering financially.

Ling had expected a severe punishment for his two week suspension, but his mother couldn't even be bothered to do anything.

Anything at all.

She just sat there with a tired look in her dead eyes, barely responding. She'd wake up, make breakfast, get home, make dinner, and spend the rest of her time in her room. On weekends, she'd spend the whole day either in her room or visiting Fang.

If anyone tried to talk to her, she'd speak in short, soft sentences, and sometimes it would take a few attempts just to get through to her. She was like a semi-conscious zombie. The house was also quiet, with no one really speaking to each other unless it was necessary. Things would never be the same in the Yao household.

When Ling's suspension was over, he had come back to school a changed person. He didn't even bother to go to the tree where he and his friends would meet before school, walking straight past it. He trudged quietly towards school, looking down at the ground. He ignored the stares he received, not paying attention to anyone.

* * *

**[End of School]**

Ling reminisced over his first day back at school.

The day had gone by quickly, with few eventful things actually happening. Nobody, except Ling's closest friends, really made any moves to interact with him. He barely paid any attention, his mind too much of a jumbled mess of depressing thoughts to take anything in. Other than a few words shared with Michael, Ryan, and Terry, he interacted with nobody.

The teacher barely reprimanded him for not paying attention, opting to leave him alone after a while. At Break and Lunch he sat by himself, most people giving him a wide berth to be by himself. It seemed like word had spread about the fight, although it was only a matter of time. Of course, people began to stay even further away from him, which he didn't mind that much.

As Ling walked back home, he decided to take a detour a local park, a quiet one that not too many people ever visited. He didn't enjoy the depressing atmosphere that had been lingering in the house for the past few days. After a few minutes of walking, he strolled through the old, rusted gates, surrounded by thick foliage, deciding to make a beeline for the swings. He sat down on them and began to think as he swung.

He thought about his life. His family. Mistral. His Ancestors' legacy as the rulers of the Xingese Empire. He hadn't thought about that in a while. A small smile graced his lips as he recalled his past

* * *

**[Flashback]**

_A three year old Ling stood atop a couch, toy Dao in hand. "I challenge thee to a duel for the kingdom!" Ling yelled out, pointing his Dao at Fang._

"_I shall not go down without a fight!" He yelled back, a wooden sick in his hand._

"_Arrrgh!" Ling jumped forward, bringing his Dao forward with a downwards strike. Two large hands held him as he fell, keeping him from slamming into the floor._

"_Be careful!" His mother called out._

"_I doubt my boy will go down so easily!" His father responded, laughing heartily. Ling and Fang swung their weapons wildly, both fighting as if their lives were at stake. Soon, it looked as if Ling would lose the fight._

"_I shall never surrender!" He cried out, struggling against Fang's might. With one powerful thrust, he pushed back Fang's stick, eliciting shock from the older boy._

"_No… it cannot be!" He gasped._

"_Hiyyah!" With a bit of help from his father, he pushed the toy Dao into Fang's chest, ending the fight._

"_Nooo… I cannot lose. Not… now…" He fell to the ground dramatically, reaching up to the heavens._

"_The kingdom is now mine!" Ling's father held him high in the air, spinning him around. In that moment, he felt pure glee… and something else. His father turned him around, now facing him._

"_What shall be your first action as-"_

"_BLEGH!" … "*Cough cough*"_

"_Okay." His father put him down gently. "We can discuss leadership affairs later. After I clean up." He left the room hurriedly. After a few seconds, everybody except Ling burst into laughter. He followed shortly after._

**[Flashback End]**

* * *

Ling smiled softly at one of his earliest memories as he rocked on the swing. He remembered how fun and outgoing his father was, subconsciously keeping those memories the most safe after he left. Oh yeah… he left. Ling's smile suddenly became a frown, and he stopped swinging.

He remembered the first few months after his father left. The pain his mother felt.

* * *

**[Flashback]**

_A four year old Ling sat in the living room, feeling very uncomfortable. Even here he could hear his mother sobbing heavily in her room. He didn't like hearing her cry. It felt wrong. And it made him want to cry too. His brothers were strewn about the house, doing their own things._

_Fang was in his room, not doing or saying much since the sudden departure. Bao and Bai sat by the cluttered library, clutching empty pages and dried out pens. Cheng hadn't returned home yet. Bojing was but a few months old, sleeping peacefully in his cot. He was too young to know what had happened._

_He clutched a piece of paper in his hands, stained with old tear drops. It was an old drawing he had made, of him and his family. When they were whole._

"_Please… come back…" His voice broke as a myriad of emotions filled his mind. Anger, despair, anguish, an amalgamation of every negative emotion._

_And the tears flowed._

**[Flashback End]**

* * *

Yes, the tears flowed. Ling could feel them stain his cheeks, despite his best efforts to reel them in. Suddenly, his body seized, and every part of his body told him to move. He jumped to his right, narrowly evading a black claw aimed for his neck. "The fuck?" He cursed as a Beowulf landed right in front of him. He rubbed off his tears, bracing. For some odd reason, he felt no fear. Simply an innate desire to survive. "Just my LUCK!" He narrowly avoided another swipe, rolling back. He got up, looking for the park exit. Spotting it, he began to run as his legs could carry him. Still, the Beowulf was faster.

Cornering him off, the demon snarled at him, baring its fangs. Ling looked puzzled as his eyes frantically darted from place to place in search of an exit. Having wasted enough time, the Beowulf jumped forward. This time, Ling was not fast enough. He escaped the full brunt of the bite, but the creature's fangs broke the skin, leaving considerable cuts on his arm.

Ling yelled in pain, clutching the scarred area as he frantically searched for an escape route. A muffled voice attempted to break through, but Ling was too delirious from the blood loss to focus on it. The creature, perplexed by the fact that a simple kid had not died, began to attack with even more fury than before. It was as if the creature felt insulted.

Ling tried to dodge frantically, but the blood loss was making him feel extremely woozy, and each dodge became narrower and narrower. Soon, he was on the floor, energy nearly spent. "Not like this…" He groaned tiredly. "Damnit, why isn't anyone here?" The Beowulf stared down at its victim for a second, before opening its jaws. Ling was face-to-face with the void, and it scared him.

"Help…" He called out weakly, but nobody came. The jaws closed around him. He closed his eyes, expecting the pain of teeth ripping through flesh…

But nothing came. He slowly opened his eyes, taking in his surroundings. He was still in the park. The creature's jaws were closing in on him. But nothing moved. "Ow!" A sharp pain echoed through his skull.

'**Goddamn it, you idiot! I've been trying to talk to you for the past five minutes!'**

"Greed?" He responded groggily.

'**Yes, I'm Greed.'**

"Oh…" The blood loss had gotten to him pretty bad.

'**I just postponed your death and that's all you have to say? *Sigh* look, I have an offer.'**

"Yeah?"

'**I can potentially stop you from travelling to an early grave. But it's gonna be hell.'**

"How?"

'**Searing pain, potentially losing your mind, that sort of thing.'**

"I mean, I don't really think I wanna die, so… I'll bite." He confirmed, slowly fading into unconsciousness.

**'Okay then. Prepare yourself.'**

"Okayy_AAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUGGGHHH_!" Ling's eyes rolled into the back of his head, and a dark scarlet lightning surged out of his body. His veins pulsed, and a sudden numbness invaded his mind. In a flash of light, time resumed.

A metal clash sounded, and the Beowulf retreated, a tooth missing. As if he were attached to strings, Ling simply dug his heels into the ground and pulled himself up. He crouched down low in a primal stance, hands covered in a rapidly-advancing ash-grey substance.

**"CoME On, i'Ll tEAr YoU A nEW oNe!"**

* * *

**AN: So, the next chapter's gonna be pretty fun to write. Hope you guys enjoyed this one though. Until we meet again!**


	7. Chapter 7 - Exodus

**AN: So... it's been a while. Sorry for the delay with getting this story out. There are a few reasons, with the main one being that Katekyo Hitman Reborn! is a surprisingly enticing show. As somewhat of an apology, I made this chapter a little bit thiccer than usual, and I'll be releasing a second chapter sometime this week.**

**If you're following my other story, Remnant's Green Beast, I will be updating throughout the week. Apologies for the _massive_ delay on that one was well.**

**Without further ado, let the story commence.**

"Ya Yeet" Regular speech

'_Ya Yeet_' Inner monologue

**'Ya Yeet'** Greed the Avaricious

**"Ya Yeet" **Multiple voices

\- **London Park **\- Location

**[Evening] **Time

* * *

**Chapter 7 - Exodus**

* * *

Ling lunged forward, claws outstretched. The Beowolf, perhaps out of arrogance or instinct, jumped to meet this mysterious child.

This was perhaps the most unwise decision it had made in its 23 years of life.

Ling tore through its torso like butter, emerging out through the other side with a viscious snarl. The pure rage and malice radiating from him came out in waves of a black aura with dark, magenta highlights as he looked around for more targets. His mind was completely blank, filled with nothing but the desire to roam free and destroy all who stood in his way. He searched for more creatures to tear into when a mysterious, hooded figure landed right behind him.

"Impressive." The figure spoke in an unnaturally deep, unrecognisable voice. It had on a black, hooded cloak and a white mask, with red and black patterns on it. The mask had slits for eyes, but red light shone through them instead. Their chest was covered by a large, black armour plate and they wore spiked shoulder pads. Their forearms were covered with black plating with a red orb placed in the middle, and their hands were covered with fingerless gloves and studded knuckles. In their hands was a sleek, silver sword, pushed into the ground for support. Overall, the figure looked quite intimidating.

**"You'll have to do!" **He snarled, preparing to rip into the new presence.

"I think it would be best if you came with me, Emperor." The mysterious figure reached out an open hand to Ling as if inviting him. The word 'Emperor' made Ling stop for a second. Images flashed into his mind. Memories of sorts. He quickly shook them off, lunging at his new target.

The figure did not even flinch. Putting a hand behind their back, they threw out marble-sized red orbs into the air. They cracked open, and a red gas filled the air. Ling fell flat on his face and slid towards the figure, almost completely knocked out. The last thing he saw were those red orbs piercing into his soul.

* * *

**[A few hours later]**

"No one's found him yet!" His mother ran about the house in a frenzy, clutching her hair. She'd already searched outside twice, the neighbours probably thought she was mad. Perhaps a third time wouldn't hurt. "My baby boy is gone!" Cheng, Bao and Bai had searched everywhere for him. Fang was still hospitalised, and would be for the next week or so, so he was in no position to look.

It had been five hours since school had ended, and he hadn't come home. Usually he'd call her on the house phone when he got home, but there was nothing. So she panicked, coming home about two hours earlier than usual. That was when no one else had reported seeing him.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and Ling's mother feared for the worst. '_My son can't be completely missing! But what if he is? What if he's…_' she went to the door, heart racing with fear. She opened it slowly, fighting back tears. What she saw was her son with a respectable looking adult man. He had black, slicked back hair, green eyes, and wore small glasses along with some fitness-wear. This was Mr Hughes, from a few doors down.

"I couldn't help but notice you running up and down looking for your son, and I just so happened to find him dozing off just outside the park by the forest on my evening jog! So I decided to bring him back home." He breathed out heavily. It seemed his evening jog had taken a bit of a toll on him.

"THANK YOU!" She pounced on him, binding him tightly in a bear hug as tears flowed down her eyes.

"I-It's n-not that big aaaa…" And he almost passed out before being shaken back to life by Mrs Yao.

"What can I ever do to repay you?" She beamed.

"Nothing at all! I'm just happy to help!" He waved, going back to his cheerful demeanour before walking off to his house. Ling's mother waved before closing the door.

"Now…" Dread filled the air. Goosebumps arose all over Ling's body. "You've got some _explaining _to do." If his legs could move he would have run back outside.

* * *

**[Two months later]**

Life at the Yao household had become relatively normal again. Fang was back at the house, and the family was actually communicating with each other. Fang surprisingly came to peace with his predicament, not falling into any type of depression over his lost job. "There's no point in sulking now, the damage is already done. I'd rather move on and continue my life instead of clinging to the past and 'what-ifs'." He said when questioned about his lax attitude.

One major problem that was still prevalent was the fact that a decent percentage of funds for the family was cut off, meaning the remaining amount had to be spread out and used more effectively. It wouldn't be too odd for the family to eat cheap, microwave meals everyday instead of actual home-cooked meals. And some days they couldn't even eat. Ling's clothes started becoming tighter on him, but his mother couldn't afford to buy new clothes just yet.

Ling's mother couldn't work anymore jobs: she was already working a full-time and part-time job to sustain the family. Fang was looking for work, but he'd dedicated his education to becoming a huntsman. Most other avenues had been cut off for him, and his mother absolutely forbade him from turning to 'less-than-legal' jobs. Not that they'd want an amputee, anyway.

One problem that greatly concerned Ling was the newfound power he felt. He vaguely recalled the events at the park, but did remember his deal with Greed. After that, he hadn't heard the disembodied voice in a while.

Whenever he felt angry, he felt an intense desire to attack something. Whenever he saw something he wanted, he felt an intense desire to take it for himself. It took a lot of mental power to keep himself in check, but sometimes he'd falter. On four occasions he'd actually stolen from shops or other people. Once he almost got caught. Oddly enough, he felt very little guilt or remorse for these actions. That worried him a lot.

One day he sat in his room, playing on the handheld device he had stolen from a child who was too busy yelling at his mother to notice. The device was actually pretty neat, and had its own games, like _Leap Ultimate Suns_, and _Echo Rush_. On that day, Cheng, Bai and Bao had gone out, so there wasn't really much to do. He just sat at home, mindlessly passing time.

He heard a loud knock on the door coming from downstairs, but paid no real mind to it. He heard the door open, and a deep male voice spoke. Another voice joined shortly after.

"You are Mrs. Mei Yao, I presume?"

"Yes, and who are you?"

"You need to come with... We promise you'll be back home in a few..."

"What's all this about? _Who are you?_"

"We are... you can see our badges..."

"_Why_ are you here?"

"We'll talk about it... you've got a few minutes to get ready before you leave."

"I don't want to go! I've done nothing wrong!" The door creaked as if it was being shut.

"I don't think you want to cause a scene here." It violently stopped.

"Excuse me," Fang interjected, "What business do you have here?"

"This really doesn't concern you, kid. As for _you_, you're coming with us, whether you want to or not."

"But I-" His mother tried to get out.

"I _said _I don't think you want to cause a scene here."

"Ow! Let me go!" Hearing his mother cry out in pain made him angry. Irrationally angry. He bolted down the stairs as fast as he could.

"Please don't make me use more force than necessary."

"Let her go!" Fang yelled.

"_Let her go!_" Ling flew across the hallway at the two mysterious men, unconsciously flaring his aura.

"Johnny, get her legs. I swear..." The slightly taller and bulkier one sighed. He held out his arm, and a green aura erupted from outstretched. Without warning, Ling was blown back through the hallway, up the stairs and into his room.

He lay dazed for a few seconds before getting back up, but that was all the time the two men needed. By the time Ling ran back, they were already speeding down the road.

Ling slammed the door and let out a mighty yell of frustration. Fang looked on in shock. "You... have your aura?" He asked incredulously.

"Do I?" Ling looked down at his hands in confusion. He focused for a bit, before that same black-scarlet aura

"..."

"..."

"How?" Fang asked after a long silence.

"I don't know!" Ling yelled out in shock. He had aura! But how? Thinking deeply, he went through all of his memories. He couldn't find a single moment where something like this could have happened. Well, except…

"The more important question is where those people took mother!" Ling quickly changed the subject, growing agitated.

"Right, right. I overheard a bit of the conversation, and I'm pretty sure they're some government officials of some sort. Why would they want mother?" Fang asked mainly himself, thinking deeply.

"There's no way she's done anything illegal enough to get the government on her case. What if they were lying?" Ling asked.

"Well, we have no solid leads. We're both in no position to go out scouting. How are we going to find her. For the time being, we could either call the police or wait." Fang reasoned, causing Ling to... snarl? in anger.

"I can go! It shouldn't be that hard to find her!" He almost yelled.

"Think logically here." Fang tried to calm him down.

"What?! Mother's just been taken by whoever the hell these people were, and we just have to sit here and wait?" Ling began to get angry

"_Just think logically for two damn minutes here!"_ Fang rarely ever raised his voice. Whenever he did, he had something important to say. This shocked Ling into really thinking. What could an amputee and a nine year old really hope to accomplish? The best bet they had was to call the police and wait. This sucked.

* * *

**[Eight Hours Later]**

As it turns out, those men were legitimate government officials. The local police had actually contacted the Vale government to make sure. The rest of the family day in waiting, having been informed of the situation. The sky had turned dark a long time ago, yet nobody could sleep. They all just waited in silence. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

Ling approached the door slowly, hoping that it was his mother. Hoping with all his heart. He slowly opened the door, and a large smile filled hi face. She was back. A bit scruffy and sleep deprived, but she was back! Her face told a different story, however. A much different story.

He led her into the living room, where the others all hugged her in relief. Cheng was almost in tears. Bojing definitely was. But she didn't return any of the hugs. She didn't look happy. She looked about as serious as she'd ever been.

"Mother?" Ling looked on in worry, as did the rest of the family. She sighed, sitting down.

"According to VICE... the papers we used to come here are illegitimate. We're expected to return to Mistral by the end of the month. It's... unlikely that we'll be able to apply for citizenship again due to this ordeal."

'_We're being deported._' Was the main idea. Ling took some time to register the statement.

"Oh." Was all he could say. Everybody else was silent. Bojing didn't understand any of it, but he could read the atmosphere.

The process was relatively short. Within two weeks, the proper arrangements had been made. Mrs Yao's sister had a few spare rooms in her house where they could live until they got their bearings again.

Their stuff was all packed, but nobody was truly ready to go. This was their new home. Their new start. And it had all crashed and burned marvellously. As Ling looked back at the house he once lived in, he felt sadness like he'd never felt it before. Tears roped down his cheek, but he wiped them away.

He had to be brave. He had to be.

Somewhere off in the distance, a mysterious hooded figure smiled on a rooftop. "All according to plan." He jumped off into the distance. disappearing from sight.

* * *

**AN: A lot just happened here. Hopefully it was all written well enough. What do you guys think?**

**Until we meet again!**


	8. Chapter 8 - The Deal

**AN: So, we're finally going to get into the actual story. In all honesty I'm fucking excited. I have a bunch of ideas and concepts that I'd like to explore as this story progresses.**

**Without further ado, let's get into the chapter boys.**

"Ya Yeet" Regular speech

'_Ya Yeet_' Inner monologue

**'Ya Yeet'** Greed the Avaricious

**"Ya Yeet" **Multiple voices

\- **London Park **\- Location

**[Evening] **Time

* * *

**Chapter 8 - The Deal**

* * *

"These streets are so damn confusing. Vale should really take a leaf out of Mistral's book when it comes to this stuff." A 17 year old Ling Yao remarked as he walked through the evening streets of Vale. He wore a white shirt and an open, golden jacket with white flames decorating the bottom and the cuffs. He also wore a pair of loose, white shorts and worn trainers that had probably seen a good year or two of use. By his side was a bandaged item shaped suspiciously like a sword.

"Let's see…" He pulled out a scroll from his pocket and checked his messages. "It's on 37 Blackfort Lane… Which I would have been on by now if it weren't for that fu-!" A flying man shooting past Ling cut his sentence short. He looked at the man, slowly turning his head to see a female figure drenched entirely in red and black. The two most prominent features were her red hood/cape and her fucking _gargantuan _scythe. The girl couldn't be more that 50kg! How the hell was she carrying that?

Ling quickly turned around, hoping to leave as inconspicuously as possible. "Ling!?" Oh, well.

"Yes, some people do call me that. How do you know?"

"It's me!" He stared for a few seconds, and then everything clicked.

"Ruby? I haven't seen you in years!"

"DIE!" A loud yell from an approaching attacker rudely interrupted their touching reunion. Ling burst forwards with speed, easily parrying the attack with his bandaged weapon. He flipped over the assailant, wrapping his legs around their neck and spinning them face-first into the concrete.

"Manners, jeez! Don't interrupt people while they're speaking." He reprimanded.

"Okay…" A man stood in front of the glass, staring at the scene that had unfurled. Ling's eyebrows raised as he recognised the figure in front of him. Roman Torchwick, one of Vale's most notorious thieves. "_Get them._" He impatiently commanded what appeared to be his goons.

"Stay back! I can handle them." Ruby moved in front of Ling, weapon at the ready. She proceeded to systematically take down all of the remaining men in the span of thirty seconds, not even breaking a sweat afterwards.

"Wow." Was all Ling could say.

"You were worth every cent. Truly, you were." Torchwick commented as he walked over a pile of knocked-out henchmen.

"Well, Red, I think we can all say it's been an eventful evening. And, as much as I'd love to stick around," He pointed his cane at Ruby, the end opening to reveal a barrel and a scope "I'm afraid _this_ is where we part ways." He fired a shot at her, which she dodged.

She landed back down on the ground, but he was nowhere to be seen. "He went that way." Ling pointed towards a building on the opposite side of the road. Sure enough, he was climbing up the side of it. She quickly followed him before turning around. "I promise we'll catch up later!" She waved.

"Sure thing." Ling waved back. He slowly began to walk away, keeping just enough distance to monitor Ruby. He didn't want her to get hurt, after all.

Torchwick, cornered by Ruby, jumped into a Bullhead that had appeared out of nowhere. He then threw a red crystal at Ruby, one which looked suspiciously like… "Can't let you do that." Ling sighed. He wanted to remain as far away as possible from any attention, but needs must.

He put on an ash-grey glove with an Alchemic Circle on it and slammed his hand on the ground. The circle shone a bright blue, and lightning-like energy surged quickly across the street and onto the building. Just before Roman's shot could connect to the fire dust, a large wall erupted from the side of the building, blocking it. There was clear confusion on both of their faces, and even more so when the wall turned into a fist and punched the bullhead.

It shook uncontrollably, attempting to steady itself while it looked for possible escape routes. Suddenly, a woman with blonde hair, green eyes, glasses, and a cape came in, also out of nowhere, and began to rain down purple shards of light, seemingly her semblance, down onto the ship.

In the heavy fire, a new figure emerged from the bullhead. She was shrouded in darkness, the only source of light being the strange fire-like markings on her arms. The caped woman and the newcomer engaged in a battle of what was presumably their semblances. At this point, Ling decided that the battle was already far beyond his control, and opted to take the safest option. Leaving. He'd try and meet up with Ruby later.

Just as he thought he'd made it away, a purple light surrounded him. "I think you'll find you're coming with me as well." The woman spoke coldly. "You were part of this too."

"Oh, well." Ling resigned himself to his fate, not wanting to cause a scene. He was too tired anyways.

**\- Undisclosed Interrogation Room -**

Ling slept peacefully in his seat, resting his head on the table. He'd been there for who knows how long and nobody had entered. Not even once. Suddenly, the door opened. A man with messy, silver hair, tired, brown eyes and glasses. Ling did not wake up.

"So, you are Mr Li-" Ozpin stopped, realising that Ling was in fact asleep. He chuckled amusedly. "Mr Yao?" He spoke directly into Ling's ear, only managing to get a slight murmur. Ozpin raised his cane up, and gently tapped Ling's head a few times. Again, only a slight murmur. Growing tired of the whole ordeal, Ozpin decided to 'gently' whack Ling's scalp with the cane.

"Who the fuck…" Perfect. "Why does my head hurt?"

"I have absolutely no idea, Mr Yao." A little white lie here and there never hurt. "Now, you see-"

"How do you know my name?"

"I know everything." He joked. "Ah, I kid. It was actually pretty easy, seeing as you match the description of a man who has evaded arrest multiple times for illegal entry into Vale."

"W-wait a-"

"Let's cut to the chase." Ozpin pushed his scroll forward to Ling. He picked it up to find a looping videos of his takedown of the henchman and use of Alchemy playing, caught by multiple CCTV cameras. Ling face-palmed and groaned, realising he had been caught. "Others may see vandalism and property damage worth hundreds of thousands of Lien. I see potential."

"And?" Ling shot back, confused.

"Do you know who I am?" Ozpin leaned forward.

"You're… Ozpin, headmaster of Bea… hmm." Ling finally realised what Ozpin was asking.

"So, will you accept my formal invitation to attend Beacon Academy?"

"Sure." Ling replied, seemingly bored. _'This was even better than I_ _imagined!_' On the inside, it was a different story. Ozpin was slightly taken aback, only letting out just enough of a reaction for a master of body language to notice. He nodded, taking a sip from his mug.

"Here," he took out a letter from his coat pocket, "is a list of information regarding the time of arrival, necessary school equipment, and attire amongst other things." Ling took the letter, putting into his own pocket.

"… So can I leave or…"

"Yes. The exit is through this door, to your first right, and opposite those blue double doors."

"What time is it?"

"It is currently… time for my coffee break." He pulled a large mug of coffee out of nowhere and began to down the contents. "Oh, it's 11:37 P.M, if you were interested. I'll let the guards know if you're lea-" Ling ran out of the door, cursing every single think he could think of that may have led to this chain of events. As soon as he left, Ozpin broke into a sweat. "Oh, it's terribly taxing, remaining so stoic." He took another sip of his coffee. "Thank the creators I have you." He cradled it like a new-born child.

"Still, an Alchemist? On top of that, he appears to incorporate Alkahestric principles for long-distance transmutations… It seems like there might be a new potential piece in the game." He monologued to himself, before stretching and getting out of his seat. He drunk the last of his coffee as he walked out of the building into the night.

**AN: So, you might be wondering about a lot of stuff, mainly to do with Ling's actions and reactions. Well, that's all for a reason, which shall be revealed in due time. For now, you'll just have to wait and see.**

**Until we meet again!**


	9. Chapter 9 - One Small Step

**AN: Releasing this chapter early because I'm going to be going on a family trip to Africa for two weeks on Saturday. The country I'm going to**** in particular doesn't really have readily available internet connection in most places, so I probably won't be able to post new chapters.**

"Ya Yeet" Regular speech

'_Ya Yeet_' Inner monologue

**'Ya Yeet'** Greed the Avaricious

**"Ya Yeet" **Multiple voices

\- **London Park **\- Location

**[Evening] **Time

* * *

**Chapter 9 - One Small Step**

* * *

Ling stood near the back of the Bullhead to Beacon, discreetly eyeing the crowd. He wanted to make mental notes of all the strongest people going to the school. Closing his eyes, he decided to make use of the art which he learnt during his days back in Mistral.

* * *

**[Flashback]**

"_So, young Emperor." A diminutive old man with grey, spiky hair, a blooming moustache and piercing black eyes spoke to a twelve year old Ling._

"_What is it, Old Man Fu?" Ling asked in response._

"_I believe that you have come of age. Your combat prowess is getting much better, and I believe now is the time for you to learn the secret passed down the line of Xingese Emperors and warriors for generations." Fu explained. Ling's eyes lit up as he formed ideas in his head._

"_You don't mean…" He began._

"_The Art of the Dragon's Pulse." Fu finished. Ling couldn't contain his excitement. He pranced around the room, leaping and flipping and yelling the whole way._

_Until he received a chop to the back of his head._

"_As much as I hold you in high regard as the next Emperor, I have no time for such tomfoolery." Fu explained, visibly annoyed. Ling settled down, a fat grin still plastered onto his face._

"_So, when do we start?"_

* * *

**[Flashback End]**

Focusing intently on his surroundings, Ling began slowly spreading out his aura in thin lines to the other people in the airship, gauging their auras. He saw mostly average auras as he spread out his aura, but he did find a few impressive ones.

'**Bunch of weakling's, huh?' **Greed spoke mockingly.

'But that's great for us-… another decent one here, but they seem too naïve. Feels familiar, but there's something hidden just below the surface. Some sort of… immense power!'

'**Things are getting real interesting here.' **Greed belted out bemusedly.

He made a note of their aura signature before continuing. Red and innocent, yet also silver and powerful. Surprisingly, he found an aura that seemed to react to his attempts to connect.

Most people weren't proficient enough in aura to detect other auras in an intangible state, such as his at the moment. But there was actually a person who could not only react to it, but passively attempt to resist it! Ling smiled. He had already managed to get what he needed. He memorised the pink, tranquil aura before stopping, calling his aura back to him.

'**He seems to know his stuff, at least.' **He commented offhandedly.

Ling opened his eyes again, taking a few seconds to readjust his sight to the bright sky. He then turned around to the person standing beside him, ready to engage in conversation. The person next to him was a girl, just a few inches shorter than him. She had black hair tied in a bun and serious, black eyes. For her attire, she wore a black jumpsuit with silver shoulder plates, elbow-length fingerless gloves, a thin silver chest plate, a utility belt, and combat boots.

"Lan Fan," he started, getting her attention, "I've mapped out the most threatening fighters here, but the majority seem to just be average students. I'll tell you more when we land." He whispered into her ear.

"Alright, Emperor." She whispered back.

"I told you to not call me that here. Ling's just fine." He reminded her.

"You're really here!" Ling's head snapped towards the voice, and he saw a familiar face. She had blonde, flowing hair and lilac eyes… Yang.

"Yang?" He asked.

"Yes, it's me! We haven't seen you in so long! Where have you been?" She gave him one of her patented bear hugs, nearly squeezing the life out of him.

"C-can't… breathe…" She let go after hearing that, still excited. "Yeah, I kind of had to go back the Mistral for… personal reasons." He didn't really want to tell the truth. Not yet.

"Ah… I understand. Ruby here was so upset when you left! She was almost in tears." Yang grabbed her sister, ruffling her hair.

"Yang, stop! You're so embarrassing…" She went red as she attempted to pry herself free from her sister's grip. After a while, Yang let go, allowing Ruby to brush her hair back into place. "For the record, I was not 'almost in tears'!"

"So, you didn't care that I was g-gone…" Ling's voice became shaky as he held back crocodile tears.

"No! I didn't mean that! I'm so sorry! Don't cry! I'm so, so, so…" Ruby attempted to correct her 'mistake', fervently apologising.

"I think the poor girl's had enough." Lan Fan spoke to Ling. He sighed, relenting.

"It's alright, I was just messing with you. I know you care." He was starting to feel bad anyways.

"Really?" She asked.

"Really." He responded.

"That was so mean!" She pouted. Yang patted her heavily on the back, chuckling.

"Yeah, but you totally fell for it! Who's the girl, by the way?" Yang asked.

"My name is Lan Fan. Th-_Ling _and I are… close friends, to put it simply." Lan Fan explained.

"Yeah, she's real dependable." Ling added on. The four continued to converse until the Bullhead landed, at which point Ling and Lan Fan decided to go their own way.

"We have some business we need to attend to beforehand. We'll catch up with you guys later!" Ling waved as the two groups went their own ways.

"Bye guys!" Yang responded.

"See you soon!" Ruby added on. As they walked off, Ling and Lan Fan suddenly became serious, dropping their playful act. Well, mostly Ling's playful act.

"Remember when I told you about those few exceptional auras?" Ling began.

"Yes?" Lan Fan responded.

"That girl was one of them. It may not seem like it, but there's a power brewing inside her that has yet to be released."

"And she had silver…" Realisation dawned on the both of them at the same time. "You _do_ know what this means, right?"

"Suddenly, I feel less willing to do this…" Ling looked down at the ground as he spoke.

"Much less willing."

* * *

A boy walked through the Beacon courtyard, casually strolling towards his destination. He had black hair, pale skin, and wore an all-white three-piece suit with sunglasses. He exuded an aura of calculated confidence; just enough to make him seem unapproachable whilst not making him stand out to much. This was an art he had perfected over many years.

Around the same time, a larger, tanned teen with a wild, red mane of hair and dark green, tiger-like eyes strode across the courtyard from the opposite direction. He wore small glasses, a black tank top, blue trousers, and black combat boots. All in all, he was a very intimidating figure, one that simultaneously drew attention to himself and warded people away from him.

The larger teen was lost in his thoughts, not really paying attention to his surroundings. His stony gaze trapped all thoughts, not letting out any information regarding his thoughts and feelings. Around the same, time, an object off in the distance had caught the attention of the man in sunglasses, leading to:

"Oof!" He was knocked onto the ground, while the large man looked completely unfazed.

"Sorry. That was my fault. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." He spoke in a deep voice as he knelt down, extending an arm to the downed man in front of him.

"What a coincidence: I wasn't either." The downed man chuckled, grabbing the larger teen's hand.

"Nice suit. It's a shame it got dirtied." The larger teen said, seemingly feeling a bit of guilt.

"With a suit this white I was pretty much asking for it." He said, dusting off his suit. "Say, what's your name? I'm Albur."

"Cognis. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Cognis introduced himself.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Cognis. I assume we're both heading to the entrance hall?" Albur continued. "I think you'd make great company."

"The feeling is mutual." The two continued to talk as they made their way towards the entrance hall.

* * *

**\- The Entrance Hall -**

Ling and Lan Fan made their way to the entrance hall shortly after their small discussion, opting for a space closer to the back of the room. They waited patiently for Ozpin as he stood behind his microphone, waiting patiently. He stepped forward, clearing his throat.

"I'll… keep this brief. You have travelled here today in search of knowledge - to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose; direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. _It is up to you to take the first step._"

He walked off leisurely as students talked amongst themselves. The main consensus seemed to be vague disappointment and confusion.

"What kind of speech is that? _Great_ way to motivate your students." One student sarcastically remarked.

"That was surprisingly blunt. Would have thought there would be more grandeur and valour and inspiration or something." Ling exclaimed

'**Nah. It's better to let the young'uns learn the truth earlier than to build them up so they can be brought down.' **Greed responded. Glynda walked in front of the microphone shortly after.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow, your initiation begins. _Be ready_. You are dismissed." And with that, the students began to travel towards the changing rooms before heading to the ballroom.

* * *

**\- The Ballroom -**

The ballroom was absolutely massive. It could have easily fit two or three decently sized houses. The room was divided up with girls on one side and boys on the other. This didn't stop both sides from trying to impress the other. Although it was mainly the boys. After saying his goodbyes to Lan Fan for the night, Ling waltzed off to go and sleep.

He laid down on a sleeping mat, ready to ignore absolutely everything around him and drift off into blissful REM sleep. At the same time, Cognis and Albur were attempting to find mats to sleep on. One careless student had their foot pointing out right in front of Cognis while he was passing through. This resulted in him tripping over and landing on Ling, who was attempting to sleep peacefully.

"**OOF!" **The both of them exclaimed as one fell on top of the other. The loud thud from Cognis' weight hitting Ling alerted almost everybody to the scene at hand. There was a bit of laughter and a few comments which followed shortly after.

"Guy fell like a sack of bricks!"

"That poor guy! He almost got squashed to death!"

"Look at the size of that absolute _unit_!"

"Wow, he's _ripped._"

"I wish he'd fall on me."

"No, you don't." Cognis immediately got back up, apologising profusely. Ling was absolutely winded, and about 50% sure he'd cracked a rib.

"I'm extremely sorry! I got tripped up." He explained.

"N-no… problem… buddy." Ling wheezed.

"**Wow. You got bodied." **Albur and Greed commented at the same time before walking off. Ling funnelled his aura through his system to alleviate the pain, and he was fine after a few minutes. That was only a minor setback. Nothing could take down Ling Yao, 12th Emperor of Xing!

'**You overestimate your own capabilities far too much. You've been scared of horses since you were five. Fucking **_**horses.**_**'**

'_Shut your fucking mouth. Horses can literally give you severe brain damage for life in one kick. You could die if a horse kicked you only once. Do you know how scary that is?_'

'**Whatever you say, buddy. Whatever you say.'**

* * *

**AN: I really had fun writing this chapter. Hope you enjoyed it as well.**

**Until we meet again!**


	10. Chapter 10 - One Giant Leap

**AN: After spending way too long getting this chapter out, I'm back! Sorry for the wait.**

* * *

**Chapter 10 - One Giant Leap**

* * *

Ling awoke relatively early, opening his eyes at around 6:30 A.M. Most students were still asleep, including Yang and Ruby.

"Milord." A feminine voice spoke from just outside of his peripheral vision. He turned around to see Lan Fan, fully dressed, crouching down right next to him. He damn-near jumped out of his skin.

"Don't scare me like that!" He half whispered. "And why are you ready so early? Initiation isn't for another 3 hours or so!"

"It doesn't hurt to be punctual. Besides, what if you were attacked while I was sleeping?" Lan Fan responded.

"Who would fucking- forget it." Ling grumbled to himself, getting out of his sleeping bag. He dragged his feet across the floor to the locker room in search of his toothbrush. Today was going to be a long day.

* * *

**[7:15 A.M.]**

Ling walked into the cafeteria, dressed in a white T-shirt with a black ouroboros insignia, a pair of loose, black trousers, and flip-flops. Being relatively early (15 minutes after breakfast had officially started being served), most of the food was still there.

He took a plate full of waffles and syrup, a second plate with bacon (Thankfully they had the larger version with a better fat to meat ratio) and sausages, and some apple juice.

"I don't believe that's a meal you should have, considering what we're doing today." Lan Fan sat down next to him, a tray full of healthier foods in her hands. "It's full of fat and sugar.'

"Tell me that when I care." Ling responded, shoving a quarter of the waffles into his mouth. He attempted to speak but his voice came out muffled, do he quickly swallowed it with some apple juice. "This is the best. You should try some."

"I'd rather not." Lan Fan refused.

"Try it." Ling offered her a small chunk, but she tilted her head away, drinking some water. "As the Emperor of Xing, I demand you to try some of these waffles." Ling commanded in an authoritative tone. Lan Fan simply sighed, turning her head back and eating the waffles. She chewed and swallowed them, saying nothing.

"... They're good-" She relented. Ling jumped out of his seat, smiling.

"What did I say? What did I say? I told you they were-" It was only when he felt air beneath his feet, and the ground on his back, that he was knocked out of his happy mood.

"_Lan Fan._"

"Huh? Milord, are you hurt? Please tell me what happened." She responded with false concern. Ling scowled.

"You should know." He sat up.

'**You look like a total ass right now.'**

'_Shut it._'

"Damn you, woman. I could never stay mad at you." He got back up, dusting himself off.

He sat at his seat, only to find a bit more of his waffles gone, and Lan Fan holding a hand over her mouth. "I'm watching you." He moved his tray away from her, staring straight at her with distrust.

"Do you feed every girl you know or is it just her? If it's the former: Hi, I'm Nora! What's your name?" A voice spoke right in his ear. For the second time that day, Ling nearly parted with his fleshy bindings.

"Nora, you can't just go up to strangers like that." A boy with black hair and pink highlights pulled Nora by her hands away from Ling.

"But _food_, Ren!" Nora yelled back. With the loud redhead being escorted away, Ling's heartrate steadied a bit.

'**She's definitely not all there.'**

After some heavy breathing, his eyes widened.

'_That boy! He's the one who pushed away my aura!_' Ling looked around, hoping to find him. He just so happened to catch Ren's gaze around the same time. They engaged in an uncomfortable staring match, neither one finding it in themselves to look away, before they tore their eyes from each other.

'_That was uncomfortable._'

'**Yeah, try looking at your embarrassing life.'**

'_You are so lucky you don't have a tangible face to punch._' Ling ate the rest of his food in silence, quickly finishing it before cleaning up and leaving. Sadly, his bacon had gone cold.

* * *

**[8:00 A.M. - The Locker Room]**

Ling took out his weapons from locker 420 (hehe), fully dressed.

On top of his Ouroboros shirt he wore a short sleeved golden robe. Embroided on the robe were white dragons and phoenixes dancing around each other. On his hands, he wore a pair of fingerless gauntlets with cartridges on the wrists.

He also wore a pair of gold and black combat boots in place of his flip flops.

"I look awesome." He had remarked to himself just after he had finished training.

'**For once, I actually agree with you. More black would have been better though.' **Greed agreed.

From his locker he pulled out a utility belt and his trusty Dao. It was wrapped in bandages, sheathing its glory until it was ready to shine.

Lan Fan stood next to him, her back against the lockers. She had already equipped her weapons: Two shortswords, both of which could attach to her forearms. Of course, she had multiple disposable ones hidden all over her body.

"Are you ready, Milord?" She asked.

"I told you, call me Ling. And yes, I am ready." He responded, closing his locker.

"Hey, Ling!" He turned around to find Ruby approaching him, her weapon behind her. That same fuck-off massive scythe. "So, how are you feeling? Excited? Nervous?"

"I'm not nervous. This'll be a breeze." He spoke, spinning his weapon around.

"Really? I'm shaking." Ruby admitted.

"Don't listen to him, he has too much confidence for his own good." Lan Fan intercepted. Ling scowled playfully at her.

"By the way, can I check out your weapons? I'm really interested in all kinds of weapons. I actually made Crescent Rose myself." She motioned to her weapon.

"Sure. Mine's just a sword though." Ling tossed her his Dao. She juggled it in the air as she tried to catch it, but eventually steadied her grip. She peeked in between the bandages, and her eyes sparkled.

"It's so... beautiful." She breathed, handing it back to him. "Wow... ahem. Can I see yours?" She asked Lan Fan, getting herself out of her daze. Lan Fan reluctantly accepted, detaching one of her blades.

"Fine." She sighed, detaching her blades.

"Wow, it's detachable! Ow! And Sharp too. It really has this... Mistralian vibe about it... It's really cool!" She handed it back, smiling. "Thanks. That really helped me get over my nerves."

"Really?" Lan Fan was confused at the notion. Before Ruby could elaborate, a helping Jayne barrelled through the air before slamming into a wall, a spear in his hoodie. The locker room's volume didn't seem to change, nobody batting an eyelid at the scene.

"... Yeah, I'm super nervous right now. Well I _was_, but looking at the intricacies of weapons and thinking about how they function is really calming for me... I'm a massive weapon geek, by the way." Ruby explained sheepishly.

"Hmm... I... often find that taking a moment to isolate yourself from the situation at hand to look at it from different angles is the best way to remove unnecessary stress." Lan Fan spoke quietly and almost reluctantly.

"I doubt you need to do that much, though. You seem so calm and collected." Ruby complimented.

"Really?" Lan Fan asked with a bit too much emotion. She coughed, going back to her 'serious' tone. "Thank you. It's harder than it looks." The two slowly began to engage in a semblance of a conversation, mainly consisting of small talk.

In the distance, a voice spoke. "Hey... It's 8:23. We should really get going now." A boy announced to his group of friends.

"I lost track of time. Mil-Ling, where-..." Lan Fan turned around, but Ling was nowhere in sight. "He left us behind... Regardless, we need to hurry." Lan Fan pointed out, speeding off.

"Oh, right!" Ruby followed her.

* * *

**The Cliff -**

Ling stood at his podium, a large grin on his face. He turned back to see Lan Fan and Ruby just arriving. "Hey, slowpokes!"

"That was mean!" Ruby pouted.

"You snooze you lose! Not my fault you didn't hear the announcement." Lan Fan walked past him silently, frowning. Ozpin, standing quietly in front of the students, cleared his throat before speaking.

"For years you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest."

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumours regarding the assignment of 'teams' . Allow me to put an end to those rumours. Each of you will be given teammates _today_." Glynda followed up.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time at this school." The speech juggled back to him. "Therefore, it is in your best interests to be paired with somebody whom you will work well with."

"That being said,_ the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years._" Ling questioned the effectiveness of such a method, as did many others. A loud "What?!" Could be heard in the distance.

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern part of the forest and collect a relic. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to strike down everything in your path, or you _will _die."

'**Wouldn't have it any other way!' **Ling could just imagine the psychotic grin on Greed's face. He smiled as well.

"Any student who does not return, relic or no relic, will fail." Glynda added. One by one, the future students were launched off of their pads and into the forest. Ling took a casual yet ready stance, preparing himself as his turn reared closer.

Soon, he felt nothing but air beneath his feet And wind against his face. "WOOOOH!"

'**So you're scared of horses but not this? Okay.'**

'_Shut up!_'

* * *

**AN: Was this chapter good? Bad? Passable? Let me know!**

**Until we meet again!**


	11. Chapter 11 - The Emerald Forest I

**AN: It's been a while, hasn't it? I've been sitting on this chapter for a while, partially fixing it and partially procrastinating. Anyways, it's out now, and I'm hoping to release another chapter by next week at most. **

**drdwastaken: Yeah, maybe. I see what you mean. I have my reasons, but perhaps I could do more in these chapters to fix the unintentional OOcness.**

**The Baz: I can assure you, I'll do as much as possible to keep any politics away from this.**

**Without further ado, let's get the chapter started.**

* * *

**Chapter 11 - The Emerald Forest I**

* * *

Ling soared through the air, the wind rushing past him as he flew. He looked towards the blurry, rapidly moving forest, attempting to formulate a plan of action. He could always just tank the fall with his aura and pray he survived, but even if he did that would leave him worse off in the long run. He could use _alchemy _instead.

He popped off a dark purple cartridge from his gauntlet, holding it in his gloved hands. Once he reached a sufficient altitude he placed a hand on it, watching blue sparks fly out. The cartridge exploded in his hands, and the air around him pulsed. His momentum almost completely died, leaving him suspended in mid-air for a few seconds. The moment he attempted to move, he was shot into a nearby tree, landing in the branches.

"Uggh… I always forget about how volatile gravity dust is." He sat in a jumbled mess for a few seconds before slowly climbing out, making his way down the tree. Once he reached solid ground he dusted himself off, surveying the surrounding scenery. "And I am _completely _lost. Okay, umm…" He attempted to map out the directions in his mind, but it was a bit hard to do, considering he was surrounded by 360 degrees of forest. He decided to look up at the still rising sun to decide.

'**The sun rises around the east, jackass.' **Oh yeah. **'The north is your west. Don't ask how I know, it's a very complicated process.'**

'_You could do without the insults. You'd be much more pleasant to listen to._' Ling turned and began to make his way through the dense forest, watching out for any nearby grimm.

After a few minutes of walking, Ling reached a small clearing in the forest. He turned around to see if he could spot anyone nearby, but saw no one. Just as he was about to move on, his senses yelled at him to move. He ducked, narrowly avoiding the tail strike of a small deathstalker, who had scurried nearby. Ling stared in concentration, reaching behind him.

The deathstalker approached him again, opting to lunge at him. Ling ran towards it, sliding underneath its jump before sending three kunai upwards at it. The deathstalker landed roughly, stumbling around like a drunkard before falling over and dying.

After retrieving his kunai Ling went back to traversing towards the temple, albeit a bit more cautious. He kept his ears open to prevent anything like the ambush he had experienced earlier. There was a small rustling of trees to his right, catching his attention. There were a few more rustles from the same direction, slowly increasing in size. He crouched low to the ground, one hand on his kunai. He listened carefully to the way the sound increased, thinking.

'_No loud footsteps: it must be a small grimm. If so, it would be moving a lot faster. It must be tracking something. Me?_'

**'Are you implying you're worth its attention?'**

'_Oh, how_ funny.' He moved slightly away from the sound, eyes even more focused. A confused yell and a loud growl rang out through the forest. '_Someone else, then. Judging by their combined footsteps, they're heading towards my location. They should be here about…_NOW!" He flicked two of his kunai forward at a soaring beowolf, nailing it in its forehead and neck. Its momentum carried it to his feet, where he stepped on it triumphantly.

**'The coast isn't clear! 3 O'Clock!' **Ling turned around and sent an aura imbued high kick at another grimm, snapping its neck

The person they were chasing also came to a halt, revealing themselves to be. "Oh, you were that other guy in the hall last night! Nice to meet you. My name is Ling."

"Albur." He stated, getting up. "Guess we're partners now."

"Guess so."

Overhead, a loud, shrill cry called out. The two looked up into the sky, seeing a black mass overhead. "Not something you see everyday." Ling stated. "Whelp. Let's go!"

Around the same time, a hooded figure heard the same cry. She put her hood down, giving her a larger peripheral vision. Moving her hair out of her face, Lan Fan spied for any grimm in the area, rating them by their immediate threat to her. Finding none, she continued.

She crept through the forest, leaping from tree-to-tree to keep her vantage point over any grimm prowling in the forest. Her landing had been somewhat smooth, with her using a hidden hook-feature on her gauntlets to swing around a tree and kill her momentum.

So far she'd seen two people go through the forest. If she recalled correctly Ruby had partnered up with an individual dressed in all-white, presumably a Schnee based off hair colour alone, and was _not _happy. Neither of them were, if the yelling and Ruby literally slicing down the tree she was on was anything to go by.

Regardless, she would continue onward until she found her Emperor. His Chi Signature was nearby, and she could vaguely sense a second person near him. Even if his partner was a complete failure, Ling by himself was more than capable enough. Still, it wouldn't hurt to follow him and keep him out of trouble.

As she continued on her path, a sound caught her attention. To be more accurate, multiple. Her head snapped left and that sudden feeling of vile emptiness coursed through her veins. That feeling of vile emptiness from trying to sense a grimm's chi. Except this time it was multiplied by about 10.

'_By the looks of things, someone's being tracked. Or they've already been caught._' Her head turned towards where her Emperor was, then back to the grimm congregation. "He'd get upset if I just left someone to die." She sighed, leaping off to help the unfortunate soul.

The unfortunate soul in question was making his way almost directly to her. '_I should count myself lucky._' As they neared, she could make out the rough image of a large, muscular frame and several black blobs following it. She quickly advanced towards them, hoping to cut them off. On the other side, however...

Cognis was having a bad day. Scratch that, he was having a terrible day. He was currently attempting to run away from around 10 grimm, something which was very hard to do considering how bulky he was. He could do _that_, but he didn't know who was looking. Being labelled a freak on his first day wasn't exactly something he planned to do.

Just as he thought his day couldn't get any worse, an alpha beowolf decided to cut his escape short, snarling at him with contempt. He sighed, pulling out his weapon. It was a large battle axe, almost as tall as the average person. Its colour scheme was crimson red and burnt brown, with multiple markings on it which all screamed "tribal".

The grimm all filed in, surrounding him in an impenetrable circle. There were no means of escape. "They wouldn't let us die, right?" He asked himself, chuckling nervously. If push came to shove he'd have to resort to _that_, but not unless his life was on the line.

Suddenly, there was a loud thud to his right. He turned around to find a dying grimm rolling on the ground in agony, a kunai planted deep in its skull. Soon, another one fell. Then another. There was a small flash of light, and the alpha felt a sharp object pierce its head, along with a lot of pain. It was a chokutō, its shortness making it more comparable to a dagger. "So, were you the unfortunate soul who managed to catch the ire of over 10 grimm?" Lan Fan spoke, still crouched over the dead corpse of the alpha. The remaining grimm, having recovered from the initial shock of their comrades dying, suddenly leapt into action.

Cognis swung his axe at one, decapitating it. "You got me." He sighed. Both their expressions hardened as they turned to the remaining grimm. There was no time to talk. Only time to kill.

* * *

Ruby sulked as she followed Weiss, her scowl only deepening the more she looked at her. Ruby was not a spiteful person, but Weiss was really testing her limits. Ruby looked towards the next 4 years of her life, and honestly couldn't see herself surviving. Oh, well. Maybe Weiss wouldn't be so much of a ...bitch, she didn't like to swear, the more she got to know her. Maybe. Possibly? Ruby was picking at straws here.

Weiss was just as angry, although for different reasons. She didn't know why she was partnered up with such an incompetent baby. Oh yeah, because said incompetent baby crashed into her! She may have had a small window of time to register who it was and try not to look at her, but that didn't matter! If she was just more competent Weiss wouldn't have to waste her time leading her.

So far, her plan to assemble the strongest team in Beacon was not looking good. She wondered if any one else was having the same difficulties as her.

* * *

Yang still didn't know too much about her partner. Blake wasn't exactly the most talkative of people, although she had made a decent effort to get her to open up. She may have acted like her puns were terrible, but that smile didn't lie. Regardless, Blake was sensible, clear in her tactics, and a good fighter. Overall, not bad.

Blake had to admit that being around Yang for an extended period of time was a bit grating. Her somewhat intense extroversion and questionable jokes were a bit much for her. Still, Yang generally knew how to lighten the mood and get people to open up. And she was a decent fighter, judging by the wake of disintegrating grimm she had left in her path. Blake didn't mind having her as a partner.

"That was quite a _grimm_ end, wouldn't you say?" Yang quipped, standing atop a dissolving grimm corpse.

For the most part. "Shut up." As a boarbatusk roared at the two, the got into their battle stances. This grimm wouldn't stand a chance.

* * *

Jaune had lucked out. Seriously. He'd somehow managed to partner up with Pyrrha Nikos, who was apparently this massive star in Mistral. She'd won a bunch of tournaments; like 4 or 5? That made her strong, right? Either way, he seriously doubted he'd have been able to make it with just his Crocea Timores. He didn't even know what aura was, and that was super important to huntsmen! Man, he really was hopeless...

As the two traversed through the Emerald forest, Jaune stared down at his weapons. They were two gauntlets, gold and silver in colour. They stretched from his fingers to his elbows, with each one serving a different purpose. His left one had an attachment which folded out into a small shield with a flick of his forearm, whereas his right one had a blade tucked in just above his arm. The most important part of it all, however, was the symbol on the back of the hand.

It consisted of a circle on the outside, with a large triangle inside of it and two smaller ones surrounding it. In the same spot as the large triangle was another, slightly smaller circle. '_Man, the amount of detail that goes into these circles..._'

Just as his thoughts began to drift off, a rustling sound behind him caught his attention. He had just enough time to hear Pyrrha shout "Look out!" before a giant grimm had set itself upon him. With a yell he rolled back, narrowly avoiding a claw strike. She shot at the beast, her bullet doing minimal damage to its thick, bony hide. Jaune had no idea what type of grimm it was, but he was sure of one thing. It was terrifying.

Blood red eyes tracked Pyrrha, who was already on the move. She encircled the beast, looking for any weak spots. She found one spot near the elbow joint, changing Miló to its xiphos form and slicing at it. The beast dropped down slightly but was generally unperturbed. It focused its efforts on incapacitating her, sensing an easy kill for later in the form of Jaune.

'_Calm down Jaune! Calm down..._' His own words of encouragement did little to still his fast-beating heart. _'This grimm is focused on Pyrrha right now. It won't attack you. This is the perfect opportunity to help_ her!' He moved slowly, crawling around the preoccupied beast and towards a knee joint.

Pyrrha was still fighting on her end, landing a direct hit but only managing to graze the neck of the beast. Or at least what resembled the neck. In that small moment of resistance, her weapon bounced in her hand, shaking profusely. As she used her semblance to still it, the beast raised its uninjured arm and smacked her across the abdomen. The blow, while partially blocked by Akoúo̱, still sent her rolling backwards.

On the upside, the grimm hadn't noticed him crawling on its leg. In a moment of bravery, Jaune unsheathed his blade and stuck it into the knee joint. The creature swung itself around to find the attacker, with Jaune holding on for dear life. He stabbed at the same point again and again until the creature fell over, at which point he crawled up towards its head. Instead of going for a strike with his blade he sheathed it, punching the grimm directly. Pyrrha, who had steadied herself, looked confused at the scene. She hoped he had some sort of plan.

He dug his knuckles deeper into the grimm's back, concentrating hard. '_You didn't study under your uncle for nothing, Jaune!_' He reminded himself. As he retraced the steps a blue light shone, the symbol on his gauntlet glowing the same hue. That hue quickly turned to a deep red, and he realised his mistake. He didn't know what grimm bones were made of, and it seems like his guess was incorrect.

"Ah, shi-" He didn't have time to finish as the grimm exploded into a black, gooey mess and launched him several feet away. His back hit a tree hard, and he fell forwards onto the ground. "Why am I such an idiot?" He groaned into the ground, slowly getting up. Thank the forces that be for aura. He didn't think regular him would have been able to move much after that.

Pyrrha stepped forward, a shocked expression on her face. It slowly became a soft smile as she approached. "Well done! I assume that was your first time killing a grimm?"

"Well, not exactly my first. My second time, actually." Jaune attempted to save face.

"Oh well, it's still an achievement. Say, what was that back there? I'd love to know more." Pyrrha asked, intrigued. "... If you want to, that is." She added on after a short pause. _Oh yeah_. Jaune kind of forgot that alchemy was this long lost art that most people have no idea even existed.

"Ah, well, umm... Maybe later?" '_That should work for now. Right?_'

* * *

**AN: Love it? Hate it? Let me know in the reviews guys! Make sure to _slap_ that follow button and favourite this fanfic! I'll see you all in the next chapter guys! Sir Boolin Games out!**

**... I jest. Until we meet again!**


	12. Chapter 12 - The Emerald Forest II

**AN: This chapter is a bit short, but the main purpose was to try and get everyone together, or at least near each other. I decided to only cover the parts of this that would diverge from the original story in some way.**

* * *

**Chapter 12 - The Emerald Forest Part II**

* * *

Ling and Albur casually traversed through the dense forest, striking up a small conversation as they went along. "So you didn't go to any Huntsman academies either?" Ling asked.

"Yeah." Albur responded. "No need."

"My brother went to one, actually. It was a really small Academy in Mistral."

"Hm." Albur responded.

"Do you have any family who were huntsmen?" Ling asked.

"No. Not really." Albur denied.

"... By the way, what's with the suit?"

"Appearances. This is probably the last time I'll wear it to fight." He responded. There was a hint of regret to his words, and judging by the condition of the suit it was clear to see why.

"Looks snazzy. Where'd you get it from?"

"There's a tailor's shop in western Vale. Real old. I get my stuff custom made there."

"By the- Hey," Ling piped up. "I think I can see the temple from here!" True to his word there was an old, stone structure in the distance, designed in a circular pattern.

"That's quite a long ways off." Albur commented. "You have some good eyesight. Surprising."

"Well, what can I say? Anyways, we could make it in ten minutes or so if we went a bit faster." He picked up the pace, jogging towards their destination. Albur sighed before speeding up, moving fast enough to be just behind Ling.

"Wait!" Ling suddenly stopped, holding a hand out. No sooner did he say that before footsteps began to ring out all around the forest. "These Grimm are really active today. By the sounds of things we have a pack on our hands. Follow me." He ducked to the side, hoping to shake them off.

"They're spread out, but all roughly coming from the same direction." He whispered. "We could dwindle some of the numbers. I-"

"How were you able to sense them just like that?" Albur was curious. Very curious.

"I'm just that awesome." Ling half-answered. "Over there." A small group of beowolves were approaching, no more than 5. Ling grabbed a sizeable pebble and threw it in the opposite direction, alerting a few members of the pack. "If we can divert the groups, we can kill them..." As Ling outlined the Albur also picked up a pebble, throwing it directly at the group instead.

"Why would you-" Ling got his answer when the pebble let out a decently sized explosion, tearing apart the grimm before they even got a chance to recognise what was being thrown.

"That's why." Albur confirmed. "Now, can you spot any more?"

"... There may be a slightly larger group closer towards the temple. They likely noticed the commotion and are coming down here."

"Let's meet them halfway."

* * *

With one mighty swing of his axe, Cognis beheaded a grimm that attempted to attack him from the back. Two more flanked him from the side, but a few quick throws from Lan Fan embedded multiple kunai into their hides.

Using her arm blades, she sliced at another beast, aiming straight for the neck. It was dead before it hit the ground. There was a low growl behind her, and a claw aimed for her neck before she could turn around. Despite anticipating an impact, none came.

She turned around fully to see Cognis grappling the beast by its throat, unphased by its thrashing. He nodded towards her, signaling her to continue fighting.

"RAAAGH!" With a mighty swing, Cognis separated the grimm's head from its body. On the other end, Lan Fan was battling another beast with her arm blades. The creature was injured badly, moving sluggishly as it struggled to hold its own.

Lan Fan took a glancing swipe at its neck, distracting it so she could use an aura infused jab to remove its jaw. "That's about the last of them." LAN Fan noted. "We should move before any more decide to come." She went about removing some of her long-range weaponry from the creatures. "The temple is this way." '_Well, the emperor is this way… but so is the temple._'

"Hold on a second!" Cognis jogged over to her, his feet imprinting themselves on the ground. "Shouldn't we introduce ourselves? We are going to be spending the next 4 years together. Well, hopefully 4." He added the last part quietly.

"My apologies. Lan Fan." She gestured to herself.

"Cognis Zanarossa." Cognis gestured to himself.

"Now, let's get going." She sheathed the last of her weaponry before walking off. He followed her, walking right next to her.

* * *

Jaune stared down into the cave, filled with confidence after killing the large grimm. He looked towards Pyrrha with a slight amount of nervousness, but quickly shook it off. Torch-in-hand, he ventured into the cave.

He was Jaune Arc- no,Jaune Armstrong. There was no way he'd be scared of a dark, mysterious, small, easily blockable… Besides, he had Pyrrha with him. What could go wrong?

..._Well_. One pride-destroying scream later, he found himself being thrashed about by a particularly pissed deathstalker. "Jaune!" she yelled, attempting to get a clean, steady shot in. "Whatever you do, _don't let_-" He was flung over the tree line, his grip on the desthstalker's tail finally reaching its last legs. "...go…" she finished softly. Sparing one final look at him, she instead focused her attention towards the giant deathstalker in front of her.

'_If I could kill it, I could reach Jaune. He'd probably be fine. Right?_' She ducked out of the way of a tail strike, positioning herself further away from the beast. Looking at the sheer size of it, she decided that wasn't exactly the best choice. She darted around it, making a beeline for Jaune.

Jaune flew uncontrollably through the air, unable to tell which direction he was facing. Attempting to get over his complete terror, he tried to turn upright. '_Aura, Jaune. You have aura! Wait, does aura run out?_' He shook his head as his spins per second went down to an acceptable amount.

He channelled his inner-Armstrong, remembering his training. '_Survey your surroundings!_' He saw… '_A bunch of trees below me and the sky. Not helpful._' There was a large tree up front. '_Next step. Make the damn plan!_'He could possibly transmute that into a slide. Wait… there was someone falling out of the sky right in front of him!

'_Think fast! Next step! Execute the damn plan!_' He reached out in front of him, embracing the free faller into a hug of sorts. He reached out his right hand as he approached the tree, praying to the forces that be in the hopes of transmuting the tree in time.

As his hand impacted the wood, he felt a large amount of pain start in his wrists. Despite this, the sight of blue sparks comforted him for a brief moment. The large tree began to change shape before his eyes, folding backwards and curving into a half circle. He flew onto the tree slide, tumbling down it with the other person tightly wrapped in his arms.

They eventually came to a stop, with them on top of him. Jaune slowly opened his eyes, the first thing visible being lots and lots of red. As his vision cleared, he came to realise that the person was… "Ruby!?"

Her head perked up. "Jaune!?"

"Well, uh…fancy seeing you again?"

* * *

**AN: Love it? Hate it? Let me know in the reviews.**

**Until we meet again!**


	13. Chapter 13 - The Emerald Forest III

**AN: If there's one thing I'm consistent at, it's being late.**

**Well, the chapter's here now. A lot of stuff came up over the past month, and I've been struggling with this chapter (Although that doesn't really excuse much, I'm still a lazy fuck). Regardless, I apologise for not getting this chapter out.**

* * *

**Chapter 13 - Emerald Forest Part III**

* * *

Ling and Albur moved quickly through the forest, making their way to the temple, using whatever sort of cover they could. The plan was simple: Albur would throw a small object, using his semblance to generate a small explosion. The pack would be drawn to it, and Ling would strike from an entirely different angle. The pack would be force to split, at which point Ling and Albur could further disorientate and attack them from new angles

"There are only a few more left. We could engage in direct combat and easily win." Ling stated, dropping from a tree. "And the temple is just up there." He pointed forward.

"There are some people over there." Albur pointed out. Ling squinted his eyes, but all he could make out was yellow and black. '_Yang maybe? And she's with someone else…_'

A loud scream from above began to make its way towards them. "Some girl's in trouble!" Ling pointed out, trying to find where the sound was coming from. Whilst he looked around, he spotted a Nevermore going around the temple, with a small, black and red figure falling from it. "Ruby!" His attention immediately shifted as he tried to make a plan.

Before he could make a move, another person seemed to collide into her, both of them headed straight for a tree. Instead of the splat he should have heard and the gory splatters of blood he should have seen, blue sparks hit the tree and formed a slide going down the back. **'Another one? Here of all places?' **Greed asked, befuddled.

'_What are the o-_' Albur shoved Ling out of the way of an approaching beowolf, and both of them rolled on the ground in a jumbled mess. Albur was the first to gain his bearings, as three more came forward to attack. With a furious snap of his fingers, a fiery explosion cut through them with ease. Albur stood tall over their rapidly fading corpses, but fell to one knee in exhaustion.

"You good?" Ling rushed over to him.

"Yeah… focusing my semblance in air is tiring…" He breathed. He got up onto his legs, and began to walk off. "Hm. I guess I payed you back." He exclaimed. Ling followed him.

'**Hmm… Reminds me of someone I used to know.'**

'_That seemed oddly familiar for some reason. Hmm. Nah, it's nothing._' He shook it off.

* * *

Sometimes, during his adventures with his friend, Nora Valkyrie, Ren wondered if he was still fully sane. Then he remembered that he was friends with Nora Valkyrie, and that he had likely lost his sanity many years ago. Oh well.

"YAAYYYY!" Nora screamed ecstatically as the Ursa desperately attempted to get her off its back. That was hard to do with Nora of all people attached to it, though. Ren followed closely behind her, attempting to get her off. He was definitely going to have a talk with her about being responsibility and safety. A long overdue talk.

But for now, all he could do was run, and hope for Nora to not be flung off the wild Ursa at Mach speeds. He was so focused on her, he didn't notice that they had already gotten to the temple. It was only after the beast had had enough of its cruel torment and broke down.

"Awww. Ren, it's broken!" Nora whined, getting off of it. She immediately ran over to the temple, selecting a rook piece from the… chess board? Well, a relic is a relic.

"I'm queen of the castle! I'm queen of the castle! I'm queen of the-"

"NORA!" His patience had run a bit thin. "Never… ever… do that… again." His breathing was heavy. He felt a consoling hand on his back.

"Girl problems, huh? I feel for you." He looked up to see the guy who had tried to do… _something_ to his aura. The same one Nora had spooked at breakfast.

"I guess." Was all he could manage to say.

* * *

Lan Fan and Cognis had walked a considerable amount, and the beginnings of the temple were making itself known to them. They hadn't encountered many grimm while they journeyed, only one or two ursa. They'd made quick work of them.

They'd heard some commotion in the distance, so they had their guard up. As they walked, a low thunder-like rumble erupted from the ground. "You should probably run!" Their heads snapped to the side to see a tall, red-headed girl running away from a massive Deathstalker.

"Hm. Good advice." Cognis began to sprint, as did Lan Fan. She turned around occasionally to fire a few kunai at the beast, but it just knocked the weapons away with its tail. Her brows furrowed in frustration, but she simply began to run faster.

The girl suddenly turned on her heels, shifting her weapon into a spear in order to fend off the monster. "Lan Fan!" She heard a familiar voice call out to her.

"Em- Uh, Ling!" She stumbled slightly. She walked over to him quickly. "Are you injured?" She inquired.

"Nope. Thanks to this guy." He pointed to Albur, who slightly behind them.

"In the suit?" She pointed out, almost incredulously.

"Don't let it fool you, he's got a seriously dangerous semblance." Ling complemented. Lan Fan studied him for a bit, before turning around to move towards the temple.

"Hm. Has anyone noticed the large nevermore currently circling around us?" Cognis spoke up. "Or the… girl still attached to i- Oh, not anymore." They all looked up towards the sky, where a figure clad in white was slowly making their descent towards Terra Firma.

"I can get her down safely! The rest of you, help the girl with the deathstalker!" He'd already began running towards her, whilst the others turned their attention towards the beast.

"We flank." She turned to Albur. "You fight with her." She turned to Cognis, before jetting off towards the grimm. He grunted in acknowledgement, holding his axe in both hands before joining the fray.

Albur was slightly more hesitant in his approach. '_I only have the aura left for a few small explosions, and that's using an object… How do I make this count?_' He moved towards the trees, hoping to gain some high-ground.

Nearer to the temple, Ling hurried over to where he presumed she would land. Slipping on one of his gloves, he slammed an open palm into the ground. Blue sparks formed around his hand, and before anyone could comment, the ground morphed into a massive, blocky arm.

It shot straight up, directly to where the girl clad in white could be. As it reached her location, it curved around her descent and formed a circle of sorts. It managed to slide directly under her, giving her a platform to stand on.

'**You may have tucked it in a bit too fast.' **Greed noted. True to his word, Weiss was held at a height that, if she were to drop, would shatter her bones if she didn't have aura. '_Hmm. It's a school for huntsmen. She's a big girl, I'm sure she'll find a way._'

"Woah! Hold up, what was that!?" Yang stood in shock. Blake was also very surprised, but kept quiet. '_A semblance? I've never seen anything like it. Interesting…_' She thought to herself.

"That. Was. So. CO-" Ruby, having recovered from her fall, ran over towards him. A slight lack of spatial awareness led her to fall into a large dent in the ground. She rolled to a stop near the bottom.

Jaune had also made his way towards the temple, although his expression was one of suspicion. '_Hey, I thought my uncle and I were the only ones able to do that… Unless it was a semblance… No way. That was alchemy._'

"Tends to happen when I do that. Matter can only be transferred, after all." He walked over to the hole around his creation, peering over the edge. It was low enough to where he couldn't reach her, but high enough to where she could climb out. Probably.

"Uhh, a little help here?" Guess not. He was about to drop down, but a yellow blur moving past him told him that Yang was already one step ahead of him.

"I'd love to stay and chat, but some of my friends are fighting a really big grimm over in that direction. So, if I could just excuse myself and…" The red-haired girl, who he could now see was Pyrrha Nikos of all people, rolled to a stop at his feet.

'**Perfect timing.' **

She shot up quickly, looking back at the deathstalker. "It's too dangerous!" She called out. "We need to retreat and regroup!" Pyrrha called out. Those fighting the deathstalker heard her, and rushed towards the temple.

"Hm." Ruby hoisted herself up, with Yang's help of course." "'Too dangerous'? Not if I can help it." She ran forward, holding Crescent Rose and firing a shot at the ground. The burst of speed from the recoil shot her forward at Mach speed, and desperate cry of her sister was drowned out by the rushing winds.

For her bravery, or stupidity (either one worked), she was smacked back by the claw of the deathstalker, straight to the ground. "Don't worry!" She got up groggily, a slight ringing in her ears. "T-totally fine!" She fired a shot at the grimm before running away.

"Ruby!" Yang ran towards her sister, concern on her face. A loud cry overhead notified everyone that the Nevermore was present, and very close.

'**Oh, she's definitely not running from this one.' **Greed exclaimed. **'Should've been thinking instead of acting.'**

Ling tensed his muscles, ready to spring forward and act. Yang was already running towards her sister, however. '_Doubt she'll be acting rationally. I have to be there to back her up._' He thought.

'**Wait. Something's gonna happen. I can feel it.'**

Shooting some of its feathers towards the ground, it managed to pierce the edge of Ruby's cloak and pin her to the ground. Yang, who had been stopped by the sudden attack, urged her sister to escape.

"I'm trying!" She cried out, yet all her pulling was useless. Ling's muscles were tensed, yet he waited. Greed was usually right about these sorts of things. But as the deathstalker's stinger was poised to attack, he began having second thoughts.

It was then when a white blur zoomed past him.

'_The girl I saved!_'

'**And subsequently forgot about? Yes. Her. She exists.' **She stood between the two, her rapier raised in defiance. She suddenly stabbed it straight into the ground, forming white glyphs on the ground. The surrounding landscape was encased in ice, and he could feel the sharpness of the cold air in his throat. On the other hand, the deathstalker had been successfully ensnared.

She turned around to Ruby, yet the words she spoke were lost on his ears. He was trying to formulate a plan on how to successfully acquire the pieces, evade the grimm, and make their way back.

'**It's likely that the deathstalker will break free soon, so it's in your best interests to **_**hurry the fuck up.**_**' **Noted. Now, to get everyone together.

* * *

"Guys! That thing's circling back." Jaune spoke to the rest of them, pointing towards the still-present Nevermore.

"Well, there's no point in dilly-dallying. And, our objective is right there." Weiss pointed to the artefacts inside the temple, which were _chess pieces _of all things.

"She's right." Ruby affirmed. "Our objective is to secure an artefact and get back to the cliffs. There's no point in fighting these things."

"So: Run and live. Sounds like a plan." Jaune nodded. The potential future-students each grabbed a relic of their choice. Ling decided to retrieve one of the white bishop pieces, which Lan-Fan also picked after looking over at him.

After everyone had secured a piece, Albur asked one very important question:

"So, which way would we be going?"

"Hm. It seems like there aren't any obviously advantageous methods of escape." Cognis added on.

Ling began to scout out the area, looking at all the possible methods of escape. The cracking of ice signified that their time was limited, and with a sigh he pointed towards the bridge.

"The bridge seems to be the quickest way!" He confirmed. '_But not necessarily the safest._' He forgot to add on.

"Then let us make haste." Ren exclaimed.

"Come on, let's go." Ruby led the group as they made their way towards the bridge.

* * *

**AN: I think this chapter could have been better. What do you think? Let me know in the reviews.**

**Until we meet again.**


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